


Awaken [Persona 5 AU]

by joy_infires, staylove_ly



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series, Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Attempted Suicide, Best Friends, Boys In Love, Death, Falling In Love, First Ao3 work, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Happy Ending, High School, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, M/M, Minor Violence, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Persona 5 Spoilers, Persona AU, Romance, Slow Burn, Some Heavy Shit, Swearing, Very Long Fic, but no smut, but only side characters, how to tag, parts of the dialogue taken from the game, platonic Changjin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-24
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-08-28 10:45:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 36,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16721841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joy_infires/pseuds/joy_infires, https://archiveofourown.org/users/staylove_ly/pseuds/staylove_ly
Summary: 'Awaken' is a fantasy based on reality that follows a group of troubled outcast high school students; Hwang Hyunjin and the 8 companions he meets along the way.They gradually realize that they are living in a toxic and dangerous world resembling a prison full of slavery, oppression and injustice, ruled by corrupted and twisted adults.In order to seek freedom, liberation and justice, they live dual lives as rebellious Phantom Thieves of Hearts. They undertake fantastical adventures by using otherworldly powers to enter the hearts of people (specifically, corrupt adults in positions of power) in order to re-shape and transform them. Ultimately, the group of Phantom Thieves seeks to change their day-to-day world to match their perception, end slavery and see through the masks modern society wears!This story is about a role-playing game called Persona 5 (developed by Atlus' P-Studio). It will contain spoilers and a lot of the dialogue is taken from the game!





	1. Introduction

**Welcome to "Awaken", my first Project on AO3!**

**I'm Jenny, the author and this first chapter will be a little introduction to the characters that will appear in this story so please read it!**

 

**This is going to be a very, very long story, so please be patient with me! I promise everything that might seem weird in the beginning will make sense in the end.**

**All of the Stray Kids members will be equally important, but some of them appear very late in the story ,so again, please be patient.**

**Anyway enough talking, let's dive right into character details!**

 

**Characters**

 

 **Hwang Hyunjin** as the protagonist

 **Seo Changbin** as Sakamato Ryuji

 **Han Jisung** as Morgana

 **Lee Minho** as Takamaki Ann

 **Yang Jeongin** as Mishima Yuuki

 **Lee Felix** as Kitagawa Yusuke

 **Bang Chan** as Niijima Makoto

 **Kim Seungmin** as Sakura Futaba

  **Kim Woojin** as Okumura Haru

 

 

**Personas & Abilities**

 

**Hyunjin** 's persona

 

“ _ **Arsene** ”_

Dark Angel

 

_A being based off the main character of Maurice Leblanc's novels, Arsene Lupin. He appears everywhere and is a master of disguise. He is known to help law-abiding citizens._

 

Strength: **Gunfire** and **Darkness** attacks

Weakness: **Light** damage

 

His nickname: **Joker**

His arcana: **Fool**

**~**

 

**Changbin** 's Persona

 

“ _ **Cerberus** “_

White Lion

 

_The guardian hound who prevents anyone from entering or exiting the underworld in Greek lore. It was born from Typhon and Echidna, and is the older brother of Orthrus._

 

Strength: **Fire** and **Physical** attacks

Weakness: **Ice** damage

 

His nickname: **Leo**

His arcana: **Chariot**

**~**

 

Jisung's Persona

 

“ _ **Dominion** ”_

Guardian Angel

 

_The fourth of the nine orders of angels. Their duty is to oversee the other angels. Their actions are the manifestation of God's will._

 

Strength: **Light** and **Fire** attacks

Weakness: **Darkness** damage

 

His nickname: **Angel**

His arcana: **Justice**

**~**

 

Minho's Persona

 

“ _ **Ishtar** “_

Goddess of War and Love

 

_The revered goddess of war and Love in ancient Mesopotamia. She seduced many men to their doom. When Gilgamesh, the hero, spurned her, she murdered his best friend, Enkidu._

 

Strength: **Electricity** and **Psychokinesis** Attacks

He knows **healing** spells

Weakness: **Wind** damage

 

His nickname: **Panther**

His arcana: **Lovers**

**~**

 

Felix' Persona

 

“ _ **Horus** “_

Hawk

 

_An ancient god of Egypt whose eyes are the sun and moon. Revered by some as the chief god, he is often depicted as a hawk or a falcon._

 

Strength: **Light** and **Ice** Attacks

He knows **healing** spells

Weakness: **Fire** damage

 

His nickname: **Phoenix**

His arcana: **Sun**

**~**

 

Jeongin's Persona

 

“ _ **Mothman** ”_

Blue Moth

 

_A cryptid sighted during the 60s – 80s in West Virginia. It has shining red eyes and is named for the fin-like appendages on its sides. It uses its keen sense for blood to track down the source and feed on it._

 

Strength: **Electricity** and **Psychokinesis** Attacks

Weakness: **Gunfire** damage

 

His nickname: **Fox**

His arcana: **Moon**

**~**

 

Chan's Person

 

_“ **Nekomata** “_

Cat woman

 

_Long-lived cats are said to become these malevolent cat demons. Their powers vary according to how long they have lived, ranging from shape-shifting to controlling the dead._

 

Strength: **Wind** and **Nuclear** attacks

Weakness: **Electricity** damage

 

His nickname: **Whiskers**

His arcana: **Magician**

**~**

 

Seungmin's Persona

 

“ _ **Arahabaki** “_

Robot

 

_A mysterious god of ancient Japan. Most famously worshipped by Nagasunehiko, who was defeated in battle against Emperor Jinmu, Arahabaki came to be treated as a symbol of rebellion and defiance._

 

Strength: **Physical** and **Gunfire** attacks

Weakness: **Nuclear** damage

 

 

His nickname: **Digits**

His arcana: **Hermit**

**~**

 

Woojin's Persona

 

_“ **Seth“**_

Black Dragon

 

_The Egyptian god of the desert, chaos, and evil. He murdered his brother, Osiris, and tried to become chief god, but he was castrated by Osiris's son, Horus._

 

Strength: **Wind** and **Fire** attacks

Weakness: **Light** damage

 

His nickname: **Shadow**

His arcana: **Tower**

**~**

 

 

**So that's the characters and their Personas for now, I hope you like them!**

**Please look forward to this story, since I'm putting my heart and soul into writing it to share the amazing story of Persona 5 with you!**

**I will try to post a new chapter every weekend, unless I'm very busy or completely uninspired.**

 

**See you in the first chapter!**

 

 


	2. Chapter One

_To access this story, you will have to sign this contract._

_Only those who have agreed to the above have the privilege of partaking in this story._

 

**H: I agree.**

 

_The contract has been sealed._

 

_The world is not as it should be._

_It's filled with distortion,_

_and “ruin” can no longer be avoided._

 

_Those who oppose fate and desire change..._

_From time to time, they were referred to as Tricksters._

 

_You are the Trickster..._

_Now is the time to rise against the abyss of distortion._

 

**H: …**

 

**~**

 

The music was still playing in the background, people were talking and laughing in the main hall down below and his heart was beating rapidly in excitement as he jumped from ledge to ledge across the room, far above the visitors of the casino. After parting ways with the others, the only thing on his mind was escaping the palace. Various policemen were already searching the main hall and some people had already caught on to the fact that something was going on.

He couldn't help but smile to himself in excitement. Everything was going as planned.

 

After just a few more risky jumps, he reached the chandelier hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the large room and heard the familiar voices through his communication device.

 

_Angel: “Good. Now get running!”_

_Shadow: “This is our only chance!”_

_Digits: “Stay calm! You can get away now!”_

_Whiskers: “We'll retrieve the briefcase on our end.”_

 

He listened while observing the situation downstairs. The policemen had definitely caught on to the situation by now.

 

_Angel: “Don't worry about us. Just concentrate on getting away!”_

 

No need to tell him that twice. He continued to jump from chandelier to chandelier, heading towards the other side of the room while still listening to the others.

 

_Angel: “But I have to say, showing yourself above that crowd earlier was an excellent move. Nice work as always, Joker”_

_Panther: *chuckle* “I bet Leo wouldn't pull it off that smoothly.”_

 

That's when he was spotted by one of the guards. “There he is!” he heard him inform his men. Time to hurry.

 

_Whiskers: “Just run! Get out of there!”_

 

More guards spotted him as he continued to jump across the room. Almost there.

 

_Angel: “Okay, the enemy's focus is on him. Looks like the rest of us can slip away.”_

_Shadow: “Everyone remember where we meet up.”_

 

He finally reached the other side of the room with one more jump onto the small balcony, just to be greeted by a few more guards turning into shadows. It was nothing he couldn't handle but he had to get over there.

 

_Digits: “Comparing power levels... No threat. Get 'em Joker!”_

 

“Arsene!”, he yelled, and the dark angel appeared behind him. He quickly defeated the enemies with a few darkness spells and moved past them to the emergency exit door, the adrenaline pumping through his veins. He'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy this.

 

_Angel: “Good. You defeated them with ease.”_

_Digits: “There's more of them?! Be careful!”_

 

The backup of guards he encountered in the corridors were no big deal either. He would be out of here soon. He continued to run along the corridors towards the exit as he listened to the others.

 

_Leo: “We got away from a bunch of those guys in black, but there are still loads more of them...”_

 

“No problems on my end”, he replied, reaching yet another door. There were more agents searching in the corridor behind it. “Where'd they go?! Damn it! I can't confirm the intruder's location”, one of them said into his communication device.

 

_Digits: “Hide behind those boxes, Joker! You'll never get away if you keep fighting. Hide in the shadows, and sneak past when you see an opening!”_

 

So he did. He only had to wait for a few seconds, observing the agent standing by the door he had to escape through. “...Hey, are you sure he came in this way?”

He paused to wait for a reply. “Understood. I will continue the search”, the agent continued and ran right past the boxes he was hiding behind.

 

_Digits: Now's your chance. Run for the stairs!”_

 

_He ran up the stairs, passed by a few more corridors and was about to reach the exit as two guards appeared right in front of it._

 

_Leo: “No! They trapped him!”_

_Whiskers: “There's no other way, the bottom floor is completely closed off”_

_Panther: “The window!”_

_Digits: “Joker, can you make it?”_

 

He didn't have time to think about it. “There's nowhere to run”, one of the agents yelled, his gun trained at him. He just smirked. “See ya”, he said before hastily opening the window, jumping through as if it was nothing.

 

_Whiskers: “What a show off”_

_Digits: “You're so reckless, you know that?”_

 

He landed in a smooth roll, proudly smiling to himself. Unfortunately, that reaction was a bit too premature. A dozen of lights suddenly turned on right in front of him, blinding him as a hundred policemen advanced towards him, trapping him.

 

_Whiskers: “Enemies? Here?”_

_Leo: “What's wrong-”_

_Digits: “These readings... It can't be- !”_

_Leo: “What happened?!”_

_Whiskers: “An ambush?!”_

_Angel: “Joker, can you handle this?!”_

_Phoenix: “Joker!”_

_Whiskers: “Oh no-”_

 

He tried to run but it was no use. He was trapped and outnumbered. Next thing he knew he was pushed to the floor harshly and handcuffed immediately. “Suspect secured”, one of the agents confirmed.

“Didn't expect to find some kid”, another guy said. He tried to move but at least six guys held him down. “You have your teammate to thank for this. You were sold out”, he continued.

 

~

 

He woke up with the worst headache he had ever felt. He was sitting on a wooden chair, his hands handcuffed behind him. As far as he could tell, the room was very dark. He frowned as a sharp pain erupted in his head and his vision went blurry. It felt like the world around him was spinning in circles.

“Guess the drug was too strong...”, a cold voice suddenly spoke up, “Wake him up.” A splash of cold water hit his face and the world stopped spinning for a while. He looked around the room. Three men in black suits were standing in front of him, one of them still holding the bucket they used to splash him with water, the other holding a clipboard and another giving him a cold glare. He also noticed a camera in the top left corner of the room. “No dozing off”, the cold glare guy, who seemed to be a detective or investigator or something along those lines, said.

He struggled on his chair, trying to free himself from the handcuffs, now that he had regained some consciousness. “You still don't get it, do you?” Give it up!” the detective said before forcefully pushing him, causing him and his chair to lose balance and fall to the cold ground.

He groaned in pain as the detective stepped forward, placing his foot on the boy's head and pressing it to the floor. “Come on, cooperate. Or what, do you want another shot?”

That's when he spotted some syringes, that were probably the main source of his pounding headache, laying around on the floor. He didn't dare say a word. Instead he stole a glance at the camera on the wall. What kind of police station treats suspects like this in front of an intact camera? Unfortunately, the detective caught the boy staring at it.

“Hm? What about the camera?”, he chuckled coldly, “are you thinking it can be used as video evidence?” The detective harshly grabbed his hair and pulled his head off the floor. He wanted to answer but the words got stuck in his throat.

“Didn't you hear my question? Answer!” the detective yelled, let go of the boy's hair, causing his head to drop to the floor, and kicked him in the guts. He wheezed and coughed in pain on the floor. The detective turned around and passed by the second detective, grabbing the clipboard in his hand and reading from it.

“Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons,...”, he read while slowly walking across the room as the boy watched from the floor. “Manslaughter too, yeah? Talk about the works. To think that all these crimes were led by a punk like this... And you seemed to enjoy every second of it, huh”, he continued.

He was... enjoying it...? Everything was hazy... he couldn't remember...

“You should know your place”, the detective added, still giving him the cold stare before telling the other man to remove the handcuffs. The man complied and removed them before pushing the boy to sit on the floor. He sat up and reached for his blood-stained wrists. His hands were scratchy and red and so were his wrists from how tight the handcuffs had been.

The detective soon handed him the clipboard. “Sign here”, he demanded, “it's a confession under your name.” The boy felt it would be no use to argue and reluctantly took the pen from the detective. The man gave him a dangerous look. “Don't expect to walk out of here in one piece. We're going to make you understand... that one must take full responsibility for their actions...”

The boy signed the confession, as he had no other choice but to do so. He returned the clipboard and was soon led trough a corridor and into a small room that seemed to be some sort of interrogation room. He was told to sit by the table which was placed in the middle of the room before the suited men left him in there alone with only a guard standing outside the door, making sure he doesn't escape. That drug was still messing with his head and clouding his mind. Big chunks of his memory were missing, and his head was throbbing in pain...

After a few more minutes, he heard voices outside the door, he couldn't, however, make out everything they were saying. It seemed to be a woman taking a phone call.

“-I'm responsible for this case, yet I'm not even allowed an interrogation?!” There was a pause as she listened to the answer of whoever it was, she was talking to. “I will not be convinced unless I confirm it for myself. This is _my_ case.” A few more seconds passed, and the woman hung up.

“Ah, Prosecutor, I forgot to mention something important”, another male detective said, “Your time will be cut short. We can't permit you to talk with him for long. It's for your own sake. His methods are unknown, after all, we don't know if it's safe to simply meet and speak with him.”

“I understand...”, the woman replied, sounding rather reluctant.

~

The door opened and a woman in a dark gray suit took a seat in front of the boy. She was wearing a golden necklace and her light brown hair was brushed to the side, falling down her left shoulder. She crossed her arms and gave the boy an unreadable look.

“...I didn't expect it'd be you, Hwang Hyunjin”, she said. He still didn't dare to speak a word. “I'm is Prosecutor Bang Saeron, but you know that already. You'll be answering my questions this time.”

Her gaze trailed off to the syringes on the floor. “Those bastards...”, she gasped quietly. “Can you hear me? It seems you've been through a lot. Almost anything can happen here... and I can't stop them. That's why I need you to answer me honestly. I don't have much time either.”

She paused. “What was your objective? Why did you cause such a major incident? I didn't think it was a prank from the get-go, but I couldn't assemble a case for prosecution. It's because I couldn't figure out the method behind it.”

Hyunjin chuckled. “Of course, you couldn't...”, he said.

“True”, she admitted, “there's no way I could be convinced of such a “world” just by reading the reports.” She gave him another look. “It seems you're coherent. When and where did you find out about that world? How is it even possible to steal another person's heart? Now, tell me your account of everything. Start from the very beginning.”

Hyunjin grabbed his head as another wave of pain shot through it. He closed his eyes for a brief moment but when he opened them again, he saw a blue light and a butterfly fly by him. As if that wasn't curious enough already, he heard a voice in his head that sounded like a little girl calling for help.

“… _You are held captive._

_A prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance._

_This is truly an unjust game..._

_Your chances of winning are almost none._

_But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you..._

_...I beg you. Please overcome this game... and save the world...”_

_The key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds- the truth that you and your friends grasped._

_It all began that day... when the game was started half a year ago..._

_For the sake of your world's future... as well as your own... you must remember..._

 

 

 

 

**~6 months earlier~**

**Saturday, April 9th**

Hyunjin's eyes shot open. He looked around for a few seconds, confused, before he remembered. He was on the train, on his way to the unfamiliar town he had to live in for the next year. After that incident in his hometown, his parents decided it would be better if he stayed in an unfamiliar setting for a while, just until his year of probation passed.

So, there he was, earphones in, and 5 minutes away from the station he would have to get off at. Hyunjin sighed to himself and went back to focusing on the song he was listening to.

The next 5 minutes passed rather quickly and Hyunjin soon got up to exit the train and walk the rest of the way to his destination. He would've never found the way if it wasn't for his navigation app. One more crosswalk, then to the right, a few more meters and he'd be there. The boy was about to let his phone slide back into the pocket of his new school uniform as he noticed a mysterious app on his home screen. He couldn't remember ever downloading it.

Its icon was a red and black eye with a star as its pupil. Super creepy if you asked Hyunjin. So, he just went ahead and deleted it. It was probably just spam or something anyways. But that's when the most curious thing happened to him.

_Suddenly all the people who were walking around him on this busy street slowed down and eventually stopped, as if time had completely come to a halt. Hyunjin looked around, confused, wondering if it was all a dream but... it felt so real. Then, as he looked across the street, he saw a blue flame erupt from the floor. It showed Hyunjin's face in it, as if he was looking into a weird mirror, just that his reflection didn't quite seem to be himself. It gave him a crazy and rebellious looking smile, it was indescribable._

And just a few seconds later, the flames and Hyunjin's reflection disappeared and time returned back to normal. Like nothing ever happened.

“This is the weirdest day...”, he mumbled to himself and decided to just focus on getting to his destination quickly.

~

“Finally...”, Hyunjin sighed as he arrived at Yongen-Jaya station, which wasn't far from Kim Sojin's house, where he would be staying. He quickly found 'Leblanc', a café where he would meet this said Kim Sojin, who would be taking care of him for the rest of the year. Hyunjin had never met that man before but he was glad that he was able to find somebody who would take him in for the year.

Hyunjin nervously stopped in front of the Leblanc door, taking a deep breath in order to release his tenseness, before opening the café door. The pleasing smell of coffee in the air immediately hit his nose as he entered the small and cozy room. The right half of the narrow room consisted of a row of three cozy sofa booths surrounding a table each. There were a few customers sipping on their respective cups of coffee and talking. Next to the wooden door in the back of the room, there was a small TV, next to which Hyunjin was able to make out a small kitchen area.

“A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still in it! The citizens can' t live in peace if this keeps up...”, the news anchor on TV spoke, grabbing some elderly customer couple's attention. “How frightening”, the elderly male customer said, shaking his head in disbelief. His wife shuddered, “What could be going on? Didn't something similar happen just the other day?”

That's when the man behind the counter to the left seemed to have noticed Hyunjin. “...Oh right. They did say that was today”, he said to himself, put down the newspaper he was reading and made his way around the counter. The elderly customers got up. “We'll be going now. The payment is on the table”, they said to the manager, who gave them a small nod in return. “Thanks for coming”, he said.

“This place is in the back alley, so there's no worries of a car crashing in here”, the elderly man said as they got ready to leave. “A what now?”

“There's been a string of those rampage accidents, you know. I just hope that none happen around here...”, the man elaborated. The manager shrugged, “It's none of my concern”, he said. The elderly man chuckled, “We'll see you next time!” And with that, the couple left. The manager sighed as soon as the door closed behind them, “...Four hours for just a single cup of joe.”

A few seconds passed until the manager looked at him. “So, you're Hyunjin?”

Hyunjin nodded. “Please take care of me”, he said politely. The manager chuckled, “Uh-huh. I'm Kim Sojin. You'll be in my custody over the next year. I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you're the one, huh? Have you been told? A customer of mine and your parents know each other and-”, he paused.

“Well, not that that matters... Follow me”, he said before turning around to lead Hyunjin through the wooden door in the back of the room, followed by a wooden staircase up into some sort of attic. It was a big room with a lot of clutter in it and dust all over the floor.

“This is your room”, Kim Sojin said, “I'll at least give you sheets for your bed. What do you think?” Hyunjin took a look around. There was a bed under the window in the left corner of the room and a desk with dozens of books scattered all over it to the right. There was also a small couch, two shelves and a large plant surrounded by some boxes here and there and a lot of clutter. Not to mention there was dust everywhere. However, there was a lot of empty space in the middle of the room. If Hyunjin got rid of all the boxes and clutter... it could become quite a nice and spacious room.

“It's big”, he finally answered. Kim Sojin nodded, “It's up to you to clean up the rest. I'll be leaving after I lock up each day. You'll be alone at night but don't do anything stupid. I'll throw you right out if you cause any trouble”, he warned.

“Now then...I got the gist of your situation”, Sojin started. “You protected some woman from a man forcing himself onto her, he got injured, then sued you, right? That's what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults. You did injure him, yeah? ...And now that you've got a criminal record, you were expelled from your high school. The courts ordered you to transfer and move out here, which your parents also approved.”

He chuckled, “In other words, they got rid of you for being a pain in the ass.” Sojin then turned serious again, “It's best you don't talk about anything unnecessary. I am in the restaurant business, you know. Behave yourself for the year. If nothing happens, your probation will be lifted. Cause any problems, and you'll be sent straight to juvie.”

A whole year, huh...

“We'll be going to Shujin tomorrow”, Sojin added. Hyunjin frowned. “Shujin?”

Sojin sighed deeply. “Shujin Academy-- the school you'll be attending”, he said as if it's the most obvious thing in the world, “We'll introduce ourselves properly to the staff there. There's rarely a place that'll accept someone like you, you know.”

Hyunjin would be lying if he said that he didn't feel like an idiot. 'Someone like him'. People were treating him like some kind of problem child with anger issues... Was it so wrong for Hyunjin to step in to help a woman who was obviously struggling? Was it really so wrong for him to defend himself against that man? It seemed so unfair...

“What a waste of my Sunday...”, Sojin sighed again and shook his head. “Your luggage arrived earlier. I left it over there”, he explained and pointed at the familiar large cardboard box Hyunjin had sent from home, standing in the middle of the room. “Thank you”, Hyunjin said as Sojin waved off and left him alone.

The boy took to the box full of clothes and daily necessities. He decided to change into more comfortable clothes for now. Hyunjin opened the box and put on a blue pair of jeans, some sneakers, a white shirt and a cozy black jacket, before eyeing the desk in the corner of the room. No one would be able to use this as a desk while it's cluttered with books and dust... Even the shelves were covered in dusty spiderwebs.

Hyunjin really had to clean a bit before he could get comfortable in his new room. And so he did. Time actually seemed to pass pretty quickly as he cleaned the windows and shelves, mopped the floor, got rid of the dust all over the bed and put his large cardboard box in one of the shelves. Hyunjin didn't even realize that it had gotten dark outside already until he had to turn on the lights in order to see. The room didn't look half bad anymore. Sure, one of the shelves was still a bit cluttered and the desk was still full of books but Hyunjin had sure made some progress.

He smiled to himself proudly just as Sojin entered the room with a surprised expression on his face. “What the heck? I heard you making all sorts of noises up here, but I didn't think you were cleaning”, he admitted as he looked around the room. “Actually, this place doesn't look half bad. Though it's only natural you'd want to keep your room tidy”, Sojin smiled.

Hyunjin returned his smile. “Why don't you go to bed for tonight? You don't have anything better to be doing, right? I'm going to closed up shop and get out of here myself. I won't be the one looking after you if you get sick from staying up too late, you got that?” Sojin added before leaving Hyunjin alone in his new room once more.

Hyunjin yawned as he changed into a black long sleeve and a comfortable pair of gray pants before turning the light off and going to bed. He didn't realize just how exhausted he was until he did so, however, the boy couldn't fall asleep right away. The thoughts about the incident were still fresh in his mind and he just couldn't shake them off.

Arrest... Trial... Criminal record...

But still... he couldn't just let that go. He made the right decision to step in, right? He couldn't have just let that man do god knows what to that woman... right?

 

_That day... He was on his way back home..._

_Hyunjin was walking through the streets of his hometown neighborhood as he heard a man's voice. “Just get in the car...”, the man growled. He stopped as he heard another voice, a panicked woman this time. “Stop it!” she screamed, struggling. It sounded like they were just up ahead..._

_He reluctantly continued to walk forward as he heard their voices get louder, indicating that he was getting closer. “How dare you cross me”, the man yelled as the woman continuously told him to stop. That's when he saw them, a man and a woman struggling next to a black car._

“ _No..!” the woman exclaimed. “Don't give me that shit”, the man growled dangerously. He seemed to be drunk. “Ow...please, stop...!” The woman continued to try to free herself from the man's tight grip but failed._

_She was in danger... Hyunjin couldn't just ignore this..._

_So, he ran towards them. “You think you're worth causing me trouble, huh?” the drunk man said. “I- I'll call the police...!” the woman replied but the man just laughed coldly. “Call them if you want! The police are my bitches. They're not going to take you seriously”, he said._

“ _No... stop...”, she said. That's when a siren went off in the distance, causing the man to freeze for a second. “Someone called the cops, huh? Get in the car!” he demanded. “Incompetent fools just need to shut your mouths and follow where I steer this country!”_

_Suddenly, the man noticed Hyunjin standing there. “...What are you looking at? Get out of my face”, he warned. Hyunjin didn't move. “This ain't a show. Get lost, kid”, the man growled and let go of the woman to shift his attention to Hyunjin._

_~_

 

Hyunjin frowned at the memory and sighed before his phone lit up. Looking at his home screen, he noticed the weird icon that had appeared there. It was the same one he had deleted earlier that day...

What a weird app... Hyunjin was sure that he had deleted it...

Eventually, he just shrugged it off and decided to delete it again. His eyelids started to get heavy and he soon fell asleep in his new room

 

~~~

 

_Hyunjin's eyes shot open. He looked around just to see a completely unfamiliar setting. He wasn't at home, but he also wasn't in his new room in Café Leblanc..._

_He was in... a prison cell? Alarmed, Hyunjin sat up on his 'bed' or platform he woke up on and examined his surroundings more._

_The walls were covered in some kind of blue fabric and there were big chains hanging from the ceiling. The cell was very small and narrow so there wasn't much to find in it. A toilet, a sink and a mirror... that was about it. Hyunjin noticed that he wasn't wearing the clothes he had put on before going to sleep but instead he was wearing a black and white prisoner uniform._

_Just, where was he? Was this some kind of sick dream? But it felt so real..._

_It was hard to get up from the 'bed' seeing how Hyunjin's hands were cuffed by a heavy chain. He made his way over to the metal bars, dragging the chain attached to his left ankle across the floor, to look through them. Two little girls in blue uniforms appeared in front of him. They seemed to be twins, since their faces looked the same and they both had very pale skin and light blonde hair. The little girl to the right had her hair separated into two buns and wore an eye-patch over her right eye as the little girl to the left had her hair braided to the back and wore an eye-patch over her left eye._

_The both of them looked at Hyunjin, wordlessly, before moving aside and revealing a round room which was surrounded by more cells like the one Hyunjin was in. Except that all the other cells seemed to be empty. In the middle of the circular room, there was a weird looking man sitting at a desk, facing Hyunjin. He had an inhumanly long nose, big, elf -looking ears, long, white hair growing from the back of his head and he wore a black suit with white gloves. The man smiled at Hyunjin creepily._

“ _Trickster. Welcome to my Velvet Room.”_

_Confused, Hyunjin tried to open the barred cell door but it was no use. It simply wouldn't budge. What the hell was going on? Velvet Room? What the hell was that supposed to be? This had to be a dream._

_Suddenly, one of the little girls spoke up. It was the one with the two buns. “So, you've come to, Inmate”, she said in a sharp voice. The other girl with the braided hair continued, “The you in reality is currently fast asleep. You are only experiencing this as a dream”, she explained in a rather soft voice._

“ _You're in the presence of our master. Stand up straight!” the sharp-voiced girl said as she slammed the metal stick she was holding against the bars of Hyunjin's prison cell, loud enough to make him jump._

“ _Welcome. I am delighted to make your acquaintance”, the man spoke up with the deepest voice Hyunjin had ever heard in his life, “This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are bound by a “contract” may enter. I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well.”_

_Igor paused for a few seconds. “I summoned you to speak of important matters. It involves your life as well.”_

_Hyunjin frowned and finally spoke up. “Important matters?” He still had no idea what the hell was going on._

“ _Still, this is a surprise... The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such... You truly are a prisoner of fate. In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you”, Igor continued._

“ _Ruin?”_

“ _I speak of the end to everything. However, there is a means to oppose such a fate. You must be 'rehabilitated'. Rehabilitated toward freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin... Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?” Igor explained._

_Hyunjin processed Igor's words. “I-I'd rather avoid ruin.”_

“ _Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation”, Igor replied. The two little girls stepped in front of Hyunjin's cell once more. “Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others. To your right is Caroline; to your left, Justine. They serve as wardens here.”_

_Caroline scoffed, “Try and struggle as hard as you like”, giving Hyunjin a smirk. “The duty of wardens is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators. That is, if you remain obedient”, Justine said calmly._

“ _I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion”, Igor added as the two little girls turned back around. Hyunjin's head hurt from all this._

“ _Now then, it seems the night is waning... It is almost time. Take your time to slowly understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually...”, Igor smirked._

_That's when a loud bell suddenly started ringing in Hyunjin's prison cell. “Time's up”, Caroline said sharply, “Now hurry up and go back to sleep.”_

_And then everything went black._

 

_~~~_

**Sunday, April 10th**

Bright daylight fell right onto Hyunjin's face as he came back to his senses, sat up and rubbed his eyes sleepily.

What a strange dream... Ruin... Rehabilitation... What did it mean...?

Shaking these confusing thoughts out of his head, Hyunjin got up and ready to go to school. Just as he finished putting on his school uniform, Sojin came up the stairs, ready to pick the boy up. “Looks like you're up. Let's go introduce ourselves properly to the staff about your transfer. The school you're attending is in the Aoyama district. It'll cost you a bit to ride the train there, and the route transfers are a pain so I'll drive you there, but only for today”, Sojin said.

Hyunjin couldn't say no to that and nodded gratefully. “Let's go then”, Sojin replied and they made their way down the stairs and through the café to head outside.

~

They soon arrived in the Aoyama district and came to a halt in front of Shujin Academy's school gate. The school building looked really big and Hyunjin would be lying if he said that he wasn't nervous. Sojin gave him a condescending look. “Do me a favor and behave yourself, alright?” he said. Hyunjin turned to look at him. “Don't get me wrong-- I don't care what happens to you. Just don't cause me any trouble.” And with that he turned away and walked up the stairs to enter the school building. Hyunjin sighed to himself but quickly decided to follow him inside.

It didn't take me long to find the principal's office. They politely greeted the principal as they entered his office and discussed some formal stuff Hyunjin couldn't be bothered to care about. Next to the principal, who was sitting in his large office chair behind his desk, stood a female teacher with short curly brown hair. Hyunjin noticed how she gave him condescending looks from time to time, clearly judging him for his criminal record. He decided it would be best to just remain silent unless somebody asked him a question. Minutes of conversation and formalities between Sojin, the principal and the female teacher passed.

“-To retaliate, just so we're clear, you will immediately be expelled if you cause any problems”, the principal addressed Hyunjin after a while. Hyunjin just nodded as the principal sighed. “Honestly, I hesitated on accepting someone like you, but there were some circumstances on our side... You might have done a variety of things in hiding in your hometown, but you will behave yourself here. If you are thrown out from our school, there will be no place for you to go. Keep that in mind”, the principal warned. Hyunjin nodded once more.

The principal then gestured toward the female teacher standing next to him. “This is the teacher in charge of your class”, he said, and the female teacher reluctantly introduced herself as Kawakami Sadayo as she handed Hyunjin his student ID. “Be sure to read the school rules. Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office. And, if by chance you cause any problems, I won't be able to protect you at all”, she clarified before turning to the principal, “...that _is_ your promise, yes, Principal Kobayakawa?”

“He is responsible for all his actions”, the principal replied. There was a short pause. “But really though, why me...? There should've been better candidates”, Ms. Kawakami complained. “It was a sudden transfer, and your class was the only one that had an opening.”

They were discussing this as if Hyunjin wasn't even there. “If you're done explaining things, mind if we get going? I got a store to get back to” Sojin asked, clearly tired of listening to all this. “Mr. Kim, please keep a close eye on him. Don't let him cause any trouble outside...”, the principal ensured. “Well, I'll be sure to have a serious talk about the situation he's in”, Sojin said before leaving the principal's office. Ms. Kawakami turned to Hyunjin. “Come to the faculty office when you arrive at school tomorrow. I'll show you to your classroom.” Hyunjin nodded in response, bowed and followed Sojin out of the office.

After they had put a few meters between themselves and the office, Sojin stopped in his tracks and sighed. “They're treating you like some kinda nuisance... I guess that's what it means to have a criminal record. Turns out your past follows you wherever you go.” He paused. “By the way... if you get expelled now, I won't hesitate to throw you out. Got it?” Sojin warned him.

“I'll be careful”, Hyunjin replied causing Sojin to scoff. Hyunjin really wished everyone would stop treating him like a serial killer or something. Sojin sighed again. “Come on, we're going home.” he said and with that they left the building.

~

It wasn't a very long drive back, but they got stuck in traffic. Sojin sighed in frustration countless times. “Traffic is not moving at all... You're taking the train starting tomorrow”, he said. Hyunjin nodded. He was already thankful that Sojin even bothered to drive him to Shujin today instead of sending him by train.

“...So how was it? The school, I mean. Think you can manage?” Hyunjin hummed in thought. He hasn't even attended a single class yet, but the staff already didn't like him because of his criminal record. If the staff already felt like that... how would the students react to him?

“Hmm, we'll see...”, Hyunjin said. Sojin shook his head. “Listen here. Don't even think about doing anything stupid”, he warned, “Still, you were expelled once already. To think you'd re-enroll a different one... It's not like anyone will be sympathetic with you. If that's what it was like at school, people might say stuff about me in the future too... What a troublesome kid I've taken in.” Hyunjin frowned. “Why _did_ you take me in?” he asked. “I was asked to do it, and I just... happened to agree to it... I've already been paid to do it after all.”

“ _Again, a subway has derailed at Shibuya Station, injuring about eighty people, and greatly affecting the timetable all across the-”,_ a news anchor on the radio reported.

“Another accident...? So that's why it's so crowded. There's been a lot of those lately”, Sojin said shaking his head. That really was odd...

~

It was already dark outside when Sojin and Hyunjin arrived at Leblanc. “Damn, to think there'd be that much traffic... What a waste of time. I wasn't even able to open the cafe today”, Sojin complained. Not really knowing what to reply to that, Hyunjin awkwardly scratched the back of his head. “...Whatever. There's something I need to give to you”, Sojin added and reached into his bag to hand the boy a small, brown book.

Hyunjin carefully examined it before giving Sojin a questioning look. “It's a diary. Make sure you write in it”, he explained, “You may be under probation, but there's no special limitations on what you do in particular. Besides following the law, that is. However, I'm obligated to report on you, which is why I'm having you record your daily activities” Hyunjin nodded. It was going to be a pain to think of things to write everyday, but he didn't really have a choice.

“Well, I'm off. I'll lock the place up, so do whatever you want for the rest of the night. Oh, but don't mess up my store. If something goes missing, I'll hand you right over to the cops”, the man warned. “You got school tomorrow... You better head off to bed, alright?” Sojin was about to turn to leave when his phone started ringing.

“Hey, what's up? ...I'm about to leave right now”, he answered the person on the phone, “Don't worry. I'll be there in no time.” Sojin smiled and nodded. “...Uh-huh. I'll see you soon.” He hung up, leaving Hyunjin with a bunch of questions.

Hyunjin sighed to himself. He didn't expect people to treat him like a prince, but the way people were treating him made him feel like a serial killer. He took the diary Kim Sojin had given him upstairs and took a seat on his bed. Figuring he should do as he's told for now, he opened the diary and started writing down what he did all day. After that, he decided to clean his new room some more before finally changing into more comfortable clothes and lying down on his bed.

He had to take the train to school tomorrow so before actually going to sleep, Hyunjin looked up which lines he would have to take the next day. Some more info about that subway accident they were talking about on the news earlier also popped up. It sounded like a lot of people were hurt...

That's when he spotted the strange app icon _again._ Hyunjin rolled his eyes. It must've reinstalled itself or something. He deleted it once more and rebooted his phone, just in case...

~

**Monday, April 11th**

Hyunjin woke up with mixed feelings regarding his first day at a new school. He was looking forward to meeting new people but at the same time he was scared that they would treat him like a murderer like the adults did. Hyunjin was a pretty quiet and reserved boy but he had never felt this insecure about something like this. He usually tended to be rather confident about things. Even as he got ready to leave the house, he hoped to God that he wouldn't get lost on his way to school. He didn't want to be late on his first day.

When Hyunjin made his way down the stairs and into the cafe, he was greeted by the smell of curry. Sojin was standing behind the counter with a delicious looking curry meal standing in front of him. He gave the boy a surprised look, “Oh, so you are actually going to school? Here, have some breakfast first. Just make sure you finish it before the customers start coming in”

Hyunjin couldn't argue with that and sat down to try the curry. It was as delicious as it smelled, and he finished it rather quickly. “It's time for you to go”, Sojin announced after the boy finished his meal. “Thanks for the meal”, Hyunjin said smiling. “...Hurry over to school. You'll end up late if you get lost on the way.”

~

Luckily, he managed to find his way around the subway stations pretty quickly, transferred lines in Shibuya and successfully got on his train to Aoyama-Itchome station. It was a bit cramped but other than that, taking the subway to school wasn't the worst thing.

“ _Oh no, the next train we have to take will be delayed too...”_

“ _What, why?”_

“ _Don't you know? There's been a lot of nasty accidents lately. You know, the subway accidents that the news is talking about all day lately. My coworker got caught up in it and is in the hospital now... But that aside, it's kinda creepy. The people who caused these accidents supposedly went crazy all of a sudden. I heard that some of them suffered from nervous breakdowns during interrogation..._

Hyunjin didn't mean to eavesdrop on these people, but he didn't really have anything else to distract himself with on the train. All that talk about these accidents... he couldn't help but wonder what happened to those people who suddenly go crazy like that. That couldn't be normal, right?

~

The train finally reached Aoyama-Itchome station and Hyunjin hurried out of the building, following his navigation app in order to find Shujin Academy. He didn't bring an umbrella and had to jog along the streets, trying not to get his clothes too wet. It went pretty well until he reached a pretty confusing crosswalk and had to stop to figure out where he had to go next. He decided to wait in front of a store by the street in order to stay out of the rain.

That's when a boy with light brown hair appeared next to him. The boy looked about his age and even wore the same uniform as him. He also looked incredibly handsome as if he had jumped out of a magazine. The boy didn't seem to notice Hyunjin at first because he was busy wringing out his wet clothes.

Hyunjin was about to introduce himself to the boy when a car stopped in front of them. The driver's window slowly opened and revealed a man with curly black hair and a dark blue tracksuit sitting behind the steering wheel. He gave the boy next to Hyunjin a smirk. A smirk that Hyunjin wouldn't say he liked. There was something off about this man.

“Good morning, Minho! You want me to give you a ride to school? You're gonna be late”, the man addressed the boy in an overly friendly tone. The handsome boy, whose name seemed to be Minho, hesitated. Him and the man seemed to know each other somehow. “Um, sure... thank you...”, Minho finally said but seemed reluctant, despite his words, as he got into the man's car.

Hyunjin didn't like the pressed look on Minho's face at all... why did he get into that car when he clearly doesn't seem to want to? The dark-haired man now looked at Hyunjin, who was still trying to read the other boy's worried expression. “Do you need a lift too?” the man asked, his voice sounding much less friendly than it did when he asked Minho. It didn't seem like the man actually wanted Hyunjin to get in.

“Nah...”, Hyunjin decided and waved off. Minho looked uncomfortable, sitting in the passenger's seat and looking straight ahead. The man didn't give Hyunjin a chance to second-guess his choice, shrugged and closed the car window by pressing a button. Hyunjin really didn't know how to feel about what just happened.

Right as the car drove off, another boy ran up to them, in a failed attempt to reach the man's car and stopped a few meters away from Hyunjin, cursing to himself in frustration. This boy was a little shorter than Hyunjin. He had dyed dark blonde hair and looked rather muscular and athletic. He was also wearing the same uniform as Hyunjin and Minho, but he wore his blazer open, revealing a dark gray shirt and his pants’ black suspenders were hanging down.

The boy was still looking after the man's car, catching his breath from running over to where Hyunjin stood. However, Hyunjin couldn't really tell why he had wanted to get to that car so badly. To put it simple, Hyunjin had no idea what was going on. “Screw that pervy teacher...”, the boy muttered.

“Pervy teacher?” Hyunjin repeated, causing his phone to light up. His navigation app must have picked up their words or something. “...What do _you_ want?” the blonde boy said, now approaching Hyunjin, “You plannin' on rattin' me out to Kamoshida?” Hyunjin furrowed his eyebrows. “Kamoshida?” he asked.

The boy gave him a confused look. “Huh? The guy in the car just now. It was Kamoshida. He does whatever the hell he wants. It's like he thinks he's the king of a castle or something... don't you agree?” Hyunjin couldn't follow. “What are you talking about?” he finally asked.

“Wait- you don't know Kamoshida? Are you for real? You _are_ from Shujin, right?” the blonde asked in confusion. “I am, but today is supposed to be my first day...”, Hyunjin explained, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. “Oh, you're a transfer student”, the boy realized, “that's why I've never seen you before... and no wonder you don't know Kamoshida.”

The blonde boy looked up. “This rain ain't too bad. We better hurry up, or we'll be late”, he concluded and Hyunjin just decided to follow him for now. The two of them started walking to school and Hyunjin decided to put his phone away, since he had no need for a navigation app anymore.

Hyunjin stopped for a second as he suddenly felt light-headed for some reason. “Ugh, my head hurts...”, the other boy muttered. The two of them exchanged weird looks. How the hell did the both of them randomly get a headache at the same time? Something was so odd about everything that day...

 

~~~

“...There was a terrible subway accident that day. You remember it don't you?” Bang Saeron asked, “I assume you know of the uproar that the public calls the 'psychotic breakdown incidents'” Hyunjin closed his eyes, wishing that this stupid headache would finally disappear. His mind still felt cloudy from the drugs they had given him. “I might...”, he replied.

“You say that like it's none of your business. It was all over the news, and one of the victims included a teacher at your high school. I have no doubt you've heard about it”, she explained before letting out a sigh. “On that day... were you still an 'ordinary' student?”

What did she mean by that? Hyunjin's memory only recovered slowly...

“...Let me change the question. You transferred to Shujin Academy, correct?”, Prosecutor Bang continued and Hyunjin replied with a nod. “An ordinary prep school that could be found in any city... That's what it should've been. What happened around that time? Tell me everything -–truthfully.

~~~

 

The blonde boy seemed to know a shortcut to school and led Hyunjin through some small alleys. Hyunjin followed close behind him but suddenly turned around, thinking he heard something. The alley behind him was empty.

“What the-” Hyunjin heard the other boy gasp at something and decided to go after him to check out what it was. The blonde boy stood at the end of the alley, seemingly looking up at a building that turned out to be-

“A castle?!” the boy gasped and looked behind them, observing the empty alley. “We didn't come the wrong way though...”, he muttered in confusion, “This should be right...” “Where... are we?” Hyunjin finally spoke up. There was no mistaking it -the building in front of them was a full-on castle. “If only I knew...”, the blonde boy replied. “Are you sure we went the right way?”, Hyunjin asked. “I'm sure of it...I always come to school this way. Look! It even says 'Shujin Academy' on that sign over there!”, the boy claimed.

It was true. It definitely said it on the sign. “I guess we'll just have to go in and see...?” the boy suggested. Hyunjin didn't have a better idea so they decided to head inside. They climbed up the ramp, pushed through the large and heavy door and scanned their surroundings in awe. The two boys found themselves in a big entrance hall with a tall ceiling with chandeliers hanging from it, dark gray stone brick walls, red carpets all over the floor and armor standing along the walls. The air felt pretty cold, just like you would imagine it to in a large castle.

“Th- that's weird... Where's the school...? Where are we...?” the blonde boy asked in confusion. Hyunjin didn't have an answer. He decided to check his phone, maybe they had ended up in the wrong place? But wouldn't a castle in the middle of the city be a well-known attraction?

“Out of service? Where the hell did we end up...?” the other gasped staring at his own phone. “And even if we did end up in the wrong place, why was there a sign outside with the name of our school on it? You saw it too right?!” he asked in a panicked tone. Hyunjin nodded. What the hell was going on? Was he slowly going crazy? But the blonde boy was clearly witnessing this as well...

Suddenly, something that looked like a person dressed up in metal armor and holding a big shield and a long sword approached the two confused students. It had no eyes or expression on its metal mask. The blonde boy stepped forward. “Hi...um impressive costume... Is that armor real?” he asked carefully, probably assuming that this was a dressed-up student or something. The figure in the armor didn't reply. “Don't just stand there, say something”, the blonde boy said nervously. Another armored figure appeared behind the first one. And another.

“...H- Hey, what's going on?” Hyunjin asked as the figures slowly stepped closer to the two boys. “Dude, I don't know”, the blonde boy replied nervously. The figures came closer and closer, now seriously scaring the two.

“...This shit is real”, the boy said to Hyunjin as they backed away from the seemingly soulless pieces of armor, “C-Calm down! Time out, man”, he addressed the figures in panic. They didn't seem to care. “We gotta run”, Hyunjin decided. The blonde boy nodded hastily, and they turned around to flee through the entrance door, only to be stopped by two more soulless armors. They were surrounded.

“Ugh, what's with these guys?!” the blonde exclaimed as the two stood in a ring of armors, back to back with no way out. One of them stepped forward, lifting its shield and forcefully knocked the boy to the floor. The blonde boy groaned in pain but right as Hyunjin wanted to rush over to help him he felt as sudden and sharp pain in the back of his head. Another one of the armors must've hit him as well. The world around him started to spin, he fell to his knees and soon everything went to black.

“ _Take them away!”_

~

Next thing Hyunjin knew, he found himself lying on the cold stone floor of a dungeon cell, the blonde boy sitting next to him with a worried expression on his face. “Are you all right?” he asked as soon as Hyunjin came to his senses. “Y-yeah I think I am...” he replied, “you?”

“Yeah, more or less”, the other said rubbing the back of his head before helping Hyunjin to his feet. They looked around. There was not much to see except chains on the wall and some barrels standing in the corner of their cell. “Looks like this isn't a dream...” Hyunjin sighed and the other just nodded. “Just what the hell is going on here, man”, he groaned. “I wish I knew...”, Hyunjin replied walking across the cell to the cell bars as the blonde boy followed. “Hey, let us outta here! I know there's someone out there!” He yelled into the empty sounding hallway. “Dammit, where are we?! Is this some kind of weird TV set...?”

However, his question was left unanswered and interrupted by some distant sounding screams. It sounded like they came from a few floors above them. “What the hell was that just now?” More terror-filled screams. “Whoa...this sounds really bad”, Hyunjin gasped, his heartbeat picking up.

“There has to be some way outta here... Come on, let's look around. It's not like we can do anything else right now anyway.” the blonde boy suggested. The two searched the walls for any openings, checked the barrels but soon realized that the only way out was through those bars. “I wonder if we can force this door open or something...”, the blonde boy said. They didn't get a chance to try. The two boys looked at each other in panic as they had no choice but to listen to the approaching footsteps in the hallway.

“Be glad that your punishment has been decided upon”, an armored guard said as him and more appeared in front of the cell, “Your charge is 'unlawful entry'. Thus, you will be sentenced to death.”

“W-What?” the blonde boy exclaimed, giving Hyunjin a fearful look. Hyunjin would be lying if he said he wasn't just as scared as the other boy seemed to be. There was nothing they could do though. They were locked in with no chance of escaping.

“No one's allowed to do as they please in my castle.” an oddly familiar voice spoke up suddenly. The guards standing in front of the cell parted and revealed something neither of the boys had expected. A tall and athletic looking black-haired man walked up to them. He was wearing nothing but a royal-looking red coat with hearts printed all over it, a golden crown and pink underwear. His eyes were unnaturally yellow and shining.

Hyunjin slowly recognized him. The blonde boy gasped in surprise and almost choked on his words. “Wait- Is that you, Kamoshida?!” he exclaimed, the confusion and disbelief clear in his voice. It was the man Hyunjin had seen in that car earlier. But something was off about him. He didn't seem... entirely himself. This seemed more like a weird copy of Kamoshida...

The man looking like Kamoshida looked at the two boys, a condescending look on his face. “I thought it was some petty thief, but to think it'd be you, Seo Changbin... Are you trying to disobey me again? It seems like you haven't learned your lesson at all, huh?” The blonde boy, whose name seemed to be Changbin, gave Kamoshida a glare. His fear seemed to have been replaced with anger.

Hyunjin furrowed his eyebrows. He couldn't help but wonder what kind of history Changbin and Kamoshida had. The man turned to look at Hyunjin. “And you brought a friend this time... because you can't do anything for yourself.” he said to Changbin, giving Hyunjin an unpleasant smirk. “This ain't funny, you asshole!” Changbin growled, kicking the cell bars in anger.

“Is that how you speak to a king? It seems you don't understand the position you're in at all. Not only did you sneak into my castle, you committed the crime of insulting me --the king.” Kamoshida paused to give Changbin an evil smile. “And the punishment for that is death.” Hyunjin's heart sunk. How were they supposed to get out of this situation? What the hell was even going on here? Just how was this real?

“It's time for an execution! Take him out!” Kamoshida commanded his guards. They stepped forward to open the cell door and Changbin took a few steps backwards, his eyes opened wide in fear. “S-Stop it”, he said as they entered the cell and moved closer to him. They seemed to ignore Hyunjin for now and decided to corner Changbin. That's when the blonde quickly threw himself against one of the guards, knocking him to the ground. “I ain't down for this shit! Let's get out of here!” he hurriedly said to Hyunjin.

Easier said than done. Another guard stepped forward and used his shield to knock Changbin against the wall causing the boy to hold his stomach, groaning in pain and falling to his knees. Hyunjin wanted to help him but the two of the guards held him back. No matter how hard he struggled against them, they wouldn't budge at all. There was no way these guards were human.

Hyunjin gave Changbin a helpless look as he continued to struggle against the guards. “Just go! Get outta here...! These guys are serious!” Changbin said to Hyunjin, still holding his stomach in pain. No way. There was no way Hyunjin would just leave the blonde behind. He probably wouldn't even be able to escape this castle on his own.

“Running away, are we? What a heartless friend you are.” Kamoshida laughed coldly. Changbin coughed. “He ain't a friend...”, he said, probably to distract Kamoshida. “C'mon! Hurry up and go!” he yelled. Hyunjin couldn't just run away, right? It was just wrong...

Kamoshida seemed to have noticed Hyunjin's conflicted expression. “What's the matter? Too scared to run away?” he said and scoffed. “Pathetic scum like him isn't worth my time...”, he continued, shooting Hyunjin another condescending look before turning back to Changbin, “I'll focus on this one's execution...”, he smirked.

Kamoshida walked over to Changbin, who was still kneeling on the floor, and lifted him up by the collar before throwing some heavy punches at him. “Lowly scum! Useless pest!” he yelled as he continued to hit the defenseless boy, whose hands being held back by one of the guards. Hyunjin couldn't do anything to help him. The guards were successfully holding him in place.

After a few more punches, Kamoshida let go of Changbin's collar, letting the boy drop to the floor. “Hmm? Where'd your energy from earlier go?” the man asked coldly as one of the guards picked the blonde back up, just to throw him back to the ground. “A peasant like you isn't worth beating. But don't worry. I'll have you killed right now.” Kamoshida added as Changbin lay on the floor with a bruised face, groaning in pain.

Hyunjin couldn't watch this any longer. “Stop it!” he yelled in a moment of bravery, bracing himself for whatever they were going to do to him. Kamoshida stopped for a moment before turning to Hyunjin. “Hmm?” he growled. Oh boy... What had he gotten himself into...

“What... Don't you dare tell me you don't know who I am.” the man spoke and approached Hyunjin. He had successfully turned Kamoshida's attention away from Changbin but... he still couldn't move. Hyunjin glared at him. He had done the right thing. There was no way in hell he would let somebody beat up a person in front of him like this.

“The look in your eyes irritates me!” he exclaimed before forcefully kicking Hyunjin against the wall, knocking the breath out of his lungs. So much for that. “Hold him there... After the peasant, it's his turn to die.” he told the guards. Hyunjin tried to run over to Changbin but the guards were faster and pressed him against the brick wall, holding him there as Kamoshida walked back over to Changbin, laughing coldly.

 

_This is truly an unjust game..._

_Your chances of winning are almost none._

_But if my voice is reaching you,_

_there may yet be a possibility open to you..._

 

All of a sudden, Hyunjin heard a low voice ring in his head, tuning out every other sound around him. _“What's the matter...? Are you simply going to watch?”_ the voice said. _“Are you forsaking him to save yourself? Death awaits him if you do nothing. Was your previous decision a mistake then?”_ Flashbacks of the incident back in his hometown appeared in Hyunjin's head. The helpless woman, the drunk man, Hyunjin stepping in to help, the police arresting Hyunjin... His body felt like it was overheating, and his head was spinning. _“It wasn't a mistake!”_ he told the voice.

Hyunjin's eyes wandered over to the guard, who was now lifting Changbin up by his neck, holding him up against the wall like it was nothing. Hyunjin tried to struggle but it was still no use. _“Very well... I have heeded your resolve.”_ the voice said.

He didn't have time to think about it as extreme pain shot through Hyunjin's head. A pain so strong, it caused him to scream out loud. The low voice was still ringing in his head. _“Vow to me. I am thou... Thou art I...”_ The pain continued and Hyunjin yelled out. _“Thou who art willing to perform all sacrilegious acts for thine own justice! Call upon my name and release thy rage!”_ Hyunjin felt like his body was on fire and the pain just wouldn't stop. _“Show the strength of thy will to ascertain all on thine own, though thou be chained to Hell itself”_

“Execute him!” Kamoshida said to the guards but Hyunjin could barely hear. All he knew was that he had to save Changbin. “That's enough!” he yelled, a new source of confidence washing over him. The guard let go of Changbin, who was now slowly sinking to the ground, as Kamoshida turned to face Hyunjin. “What was that...?!” he growled in anger. “You desire to be killed that much...? Fine!” he said and gave one of the guards holding back Hyunjin a sign. The guard knocked his shield over Hyunjin's head. Hyunjin stumbled a bit, but it didn't affect him much. He felt an immense power rush through him. A power so strong that it pushed the guards in front of him back a few meters, as if a strong wind blew in their direction for a few seconds.

Then everyone fell silent. Both Kamoshida and the guards were shocked and confused. Hyunjin felt something appear on his face... a mask? He reached up to remove it but it seemed to be stuck against his skin. He didn't know where it had come from or why it had appeared, but he knew that he had to remove it. He tried to peel it off his face, but it was attached to it so tightly, it was almost like it was a part of his skin. However, something told him that he _had_ to rip it off, no matter what. It hurt so bad but Hyunjin eventually managed to rip the mask off his face.

What happened then, was something Hyunjin had never experienced before. The pain had disappeared completely and his whole body lit up in blue flames. A feeling of immense power shot through Hyunjin's veins, making it hard for him to hide his smirk. Kamoshida and his guards took several steps back as they watched Hyunjin's new power unfold. The blue flames were now rising up behind Hyunjin, slowly forming into a creature embedded in blue light.

The creature looked like a male dark angel, seeing as it had large, black wings. It wore a black and red suit, red boots and a high black top-hat. It's mischievous smile resembled Hyunjin's in a way. The creature was chained to Hyunjin, as if it belonged to him somehow.

The creature moved its arms, causing the guards to be knocked against the wall forcefully. The whole cell was lit up by the blue light the creature created. Kamoshida sat on the floor like a coward, unable to believe his eyes while Changbin stared at the creature behind Hyunjin with and open mouth. “What the- “, was all the blonde boy managed to say.

“ _I am the pillager of twilight- 'Arsene'. I am the rebel's soul that resides within you. If you so desire, I shall consider granting you the power to break through this crisis.”_ the creature said to Hyunjin in the familiar low voice he had heard in his head just a few minutes ago.

He knew now. He could feel it. Arsene was his persona. His suppressed rebel-self. Hyunjin smirked, the feeling of power still running through his body. “Give me your power”, he said to Arsene. _“Very well...”_ , Arsene said.

Kamoshida got up from the floor. “W-Who the hell are you...? Guards! Start by killing that one!” he said. The guards approached Hyunjin. _“Detest the enemies before you! Change that animosity into power... and unleash it!”_ , Arsene said to Hyunjin as the guards charged an attack. Hyunjin didn't know exactly how he did it but his persona seemed to follow his plans without him having to speak a single word. Right as Hyunjin imagined it to happen, Arsene moved forward and formed a cloud of darkness around the guards, causing them to pass out and turn into some sort of black mist until they disappeared completely.

“ _This power of mine is yours”_ , Arsene said before disappearing as well. It was only Changbin, Hyunjin and Kamoshida left in the cell. The room fell completely silent once more as Changbin stared at Hyunjin. “What... was all of that just now...?” the blonde asked. Even Hyunjin didn't really understand what the hell just happened.

The two had no time to think about it either, as Kamoshida approached them, his glowing yellow eyes fixed on Hyunjin. “You little...!”, he growled. Changbin took the chance to quickly get up from the floor and threw his body against Kamoshida's, successfully knocking the man to the floor. “You like that, you son of a bitch!?” he yelled. “Quick, lock the cell!” Hyunjin told the blonde, gesturing towards the key one of the guards must've dropped on the ground.

Changbin quickly grabbed the key and the two students fled through the door, locking Kamoshida inside. “Damn you!” Kamoshida exclaimed as he got up from the floor.

“Hey! What the hell was that just now!?” Changbin asked again. And... your clothes...?” he added, looking at Hyunjin in a confused manner. Hyunjin hadn't even noticed this until Changbin pointed it out. He wasn't wearing his school uniform anymore. He was wearing a long black coat, red gloves and a white mask with pretty black patterns on it. The same mask he had ripped off earlier. Hyunjin didn't have an explanation for this but just as he noticed it, his clothes turned back to normal in the blink of an eye. “Whoa, it went back to normal...!?” Changbin exclaimed. Kamoshida kicked against the cell bars. “You bastards!” he yelled.

“This is so fucking crazy” the blonde said as he gave Kamoshida one last look. “Anyways, let's get out of here!” he said to Hyunjin, who couldn't agree more. The two of them ran down the corridor, eager to escape this castle. They could still hear Kamoshida's voice behind them, ordering his guards to find and kill them but their main objective was to get out of there.

They ran through corridor after corridor, carefully looking out for guards at each corner. Hyunjin noticed that there were a lot more cells in all of the corridors and hallways they passed through. Some of them were empty, but some of them also had inmates in them. The odd thing about that was that they were all wearing red tracksuits and they all seemed to have bruises all over them. They also didn't seem to care about Hyunjin and Changbin as they passed by those cells. They didn't even spare them a look and just continued to sadly stare at the ground.

“Dude, there are some guards over there!” Changbin whisper-yelled and dragged Hyunjin to hide behind some barrels near one of the cells. The guards didn't seem to have noticed the two but they were blocking the hallway that the boys needed to pass through. “Dammit, how are we gonna get out of here...”, Hyunjin whispered to the blonde as they observed the guards.

“Hey, you there!” An unfamiliar voice suddenly spoke up from behind them. Changbin and Hyunjin slowly turned around to the cell they were hiding in front of. Behind the bars stood a boy who looked about their age, maybe a bit younger. He had brown hair and dark brown eyes, wore a white mask that resembled an angel's wings and a white blazer matching his white pants and shoes. His blazer was open, revealing a white shirt and a long silver necklace around his neck. He seemed different from the other prisoners Hyunjin had seen in the dungeon so far.

“W-Who are you?” Changbin asked, unsure what to think of the brown-haired boy. However, the boy didn't seem too sure about Hyunjin and Changbin either. “You're not soldiers of this castle, right? Can you get me out of here? Look, the key is right there!” the boy said giving the two a desperate look and pointing at a key by the wall, clearly out of his reach. Changbin looked at Hyunjin. Could they trust this boy? What if he was just trying to trick them?

They heard some guards' voices slowly move closer to their position. They didn't have a lot of time to think about it. “You want to know where the exit is, right? Let me out and I'll take you there! You don't wanna get caught and executed right?” the boy whispered hastily. Changbin gave Hyunjin another look. “We don't really have a choice...” Hyunjin whispered. The blonde thought about it for one more second before nodding and grabbing the key to quickly release the other boy.

Once he was freed, the boy hastily left his cell and sighed. “Freedom tastes so great...”, he smiled before taking a look around. “Over there!”, he said pointing at a small door the other two hadn't even noticed before. The tree of them stealthily made their way to the door and passed through it.

“Follow me and stay quiet”, the new boy whispered and lead the way through the dungeons until they reached large room with a set of stairs on the other side of it. It looked pretty promising! However, right as they made their way over to it, two guards came down the stairs and spotted them immediately. Hyunjin's school uniform turned into the black coat and red gloves from earlier as soon as the guards saw them. “Shit, it's them!” Changbin said, clearly in panic.

At first, Hyunjin panicked too but he soon felt the familiar feeling of power rush through his veins and he remembered. He had to summon his persona. The enemies stepped closer to them as Hyunjin took a deep breath. “Arsene!” he finally yelled and ripped off his mask, feeling his other self leave his heart to rise up behind him, just like earlier.

Just as he did so, the brown-haired boy stepped forward as well, a confident glow in his eyes. He seemed to focus for a second before he went ahead and yelled, “Dominion!” summoning his own persona. A female angel, holding a blue book in one and a scale in her other hand, and wearing a white gown with golden patters on it appeared behind the boy. She had dark blue hair, shining blue eyes, pale skin, a golden cape and large white wings. She was also connected to the boy by a loose chain, just like Arsene was connected to Hyunjin.

“Y-you have one of those things too...!?” Changbin exclaimed, staring at the two personas the others had awakened to. “Let's shut them up!” the boy said and gave Hyunjin a smirk as they both commanded their personas to attack the guards. Arsene moved towards one of the guards and attacked him with the dark cloud he had used earlier while Dominion blinded the other with an immense light attack. The two guards soon turned into smoke and the stairs were free for the three to use. Changbin came forth from behind the barrels he was hiding behind.

“Not bad. Your persona is pretty powerful.” the boy said to Hyunjin. Changbin looked confused. “Persona...? You mean those things that come out of you guys all dramatic-like?”, he asked.

“Yes. You saw how he ripped off his mask when he summoned it, right? Well, everybody wears a mask deep within their heart. By removing that-” the boy started to explain but got interrupted as Hyunjin's clothes went back to normal. The boy's clothes and mask stayed the same, however. “Hmm, it seems you don't have full control over your power yet.” he observed, “The transformation shouldn't normally dissolve like that. After all-” Changbin interrupted him, “Bro, all of that crap doesn't make any sense!”

The brown-haired boy sighed. “It would make sense if you'd just let me finish, Blondie”, he said to Changbin. “Hey, don't call me Blondie! My name's Changbin...”, the blonde protested crossing his arms. The other sighed once more. “Fine, I'm Jisung”, he said before turning to Hyunjin with an expectant expression. “Oh, I'm Hyunjin”, he introduced himself to Jisung.

“Now come on, we should hurry. It's not much farther to the exit”, Jisung said and led the two boys up the stairs. They passed through a few more corridors until they finally reached a small room with an open window. Hyunjin and Changbin let out a sigh of relief. “We're finally getting out of here”, the blonde sighed. “Yeah, you guys should get going before more shadows show up”, Jisung said. “But... what about you?” Changbin asked the other.

“There's something that I still have to do... We're going our separate ways.” Jisung explained. Hyunjin and Changbin nodded slowly. “Well, thanks for helping us out”, Hyunjin said, smiling at the boy. “Likewise”, he replied smiling, “Be careful on your way.” And with that, the two boys climbed through the window and left the castle behind.

~~~

Next thing they knew, they found themselves on the street where they had seen Kamoshida in his car with Minho earlier. Hyunjin looked around. “Did we make it back?” Changbin asked, doing the same. The castle seemed to be gone.

“ _You have returned to the real world. Welcome back.”_ a voice coming from Hyunjin's phone spoke. “Huh? Returned...?” Changbin asked in confusion. “I think that means we got away...” Hyunjin said. The blonde took a deep sigh. “...I don't even know what to think anymore. What the hell was all that? That castle, Kamoshida... and that Jisung guy”, he said, “What the hell is going on!?”

Two police officers approached Hyunjin and Changbin. “Hey, you. Are you students of Shujin Academy?” one of them said, looking at their school uniforms. “Cutting classes, are we?” the other teased. “No! We were trying to get to school but we ended up at that weird ca-”, Changbin started explaining with an attitude before Hyunjin elbowed him. There was no way these officers would take them seriously. The first officer seemed irritated and impatient. “Are you his friend?” he asked Hyunjin in an irritated tone. Hyunjin nodded, “Something like that...” “Then you should go to school. Take him with you.” the second officer said.

“But I'm telling you, there was-”, Changbin started once more but got cut off again. “We passed by Shujin on our way here. There was nothing out of the ordinary about it”, the first officer sighed, “If you spout any more nonsense, I'll contact your school. Is that what you want?” The blonde gave Hyunjin a look. “Let's just go, man”, Hyunjin said and turned to leave. Changbin gave the officers one last glare but soon followed the other to school.

The two boys took the exact same way they had before but this time, there was no large castle. It was the regular school building that Hyunjin had seen the day before with Sojin. Changbin stared at it in disbelief. “Is this for real...? I'm sure we came here the exact same way... What's going on here...?” he asked. Hyunjin could've asked him the same thing.

That's when a man in a suit came out of the school building. “That's exactly what I wanted to ask you. We received a call from the police.” he said. Changbin rolled his eyes. “That damn cop snitched on us after all...”, he muttered. The man gave the two a condescending look. “It's rare not to see you alone, Seo Changbin. Where were you roaming around until this time?” he asked. He seemed to be a teacher or counselor or something.

“Um...a castle...?” the blonde answered honestly, half joking, half serious. Well, he wasn't lying...The man didn't seem to find it funny though. “So, you have no intention of giving an honest answer?” he said strictly.

Before they could say anything else, however, a familiar voice spoke up from behind the man. “What's this about a 'castle'?”, the voice asked before a familiar black-haired man stepped forward.

“Kamoshida!?” Changbin exclaimed. It was him, just that he was wearing normal clothes instead of his crown and weird red coat from earlier. “You seem so carefree Seo Changbin. Quite a difference from when you did morning practice for the track team”, he said in a disgustingly calm voice. He seemed to know exactly how to make the blonde angry. “Shut up!” Changbin exclaimed, shaking with anger, “It's your fault that--”

“How dare you speak that way to Mr. Kamoshida!” the counselor said. “...There's not much leeway left for you, you know?” Changbin scoffed. “He's the one that provoked me!” “Do you really want to get expelled!? In any case, you'll have to explain yourself! Follow me!” the counselor added. “What?! This is bullshit!”

Kamoshida then turned to the counselor, putting on a smile. It seemed like such an unnatural smile, Hyunjin couldn't help but silently scoff at him. “Come now, I should have been more considerate, too. Let's just say that we were both to blame”, Kamoshida said to the counselor. He seemed to buy it very easily. “Well, if you say so...”, he said. “Still, you're coming with me. It's undeniable that you're extremely late”, the counselor added.

Changbin sighed in defeat. “Fine...”, he said and followed the counselor inside, not before shooting Kamoshida a glare as he walked past him though. Kamoshida was still standing there giving Hyunjin a curious look. “By the way, you're that new transfer student, correct? Hwang Hyunjin...”, the teacher asked looking at him for a while. Hyunjin nodded in response. “...Have we met somewhere?” Kamoshida asked, still looking at him. Did he not remember anything of what happened in the castle? Hyunjin was 100% sure Kamoshida had seen him clearly there...

“Earlier today... I saw a boy in your car”, Hyunjin reminded him. Kamoshida furrowed his brows, as if he felt there was more but couldn't put his finger on it. “That's right... I remember now...”, he said slowly. He looked at Hyunjin for a few more seconds before switching back to his usual self.

“Well, I'll overlook this just for today. I'm sure you've heard from the principal, but cause any trouble and you'll be expelled. Understand?”, he said. It sounded more like a threat than a warning to Hyunjin. “I understand”, Hyunjin said. “At any rate, hurry up and go to the faculty office. I'm sure Ms. Kawakami is tired of waiting”, Kamoshida added and turned around to return to the school building. However, he stopped and turned around once more, smiling grossly this time. “Good luck trying to enjoy your new school life”, he said before finally heading inside. What a shady teacher...

~~~

“The school turned into an old castle...? Are you hallucinating from an overdose? I won't put up with you if you're simply joking around”, Bang Saeron said, clearly irritated. Hyunjin had expected this. Who would believe that kind of story?

She checked the watch on her wrist. She did say that there wasn't a lot of time. “I'm going to have you continue the story. The one who received a “calling card” from the Phantom Thieves was an Olympic medalist... An alumnus from Shujin Academy-- the PE teacher Kamoshida Suguru”, Prosecutor Bang continued and put a picture of Kamoshida on the interrogation table. “It's true that what he did were deplorable crimes from... indulging his desire. He confessed to it all. But there should have been no connection between the two of you since you had just transferred. Why did you target him?” she asked.

~~~

Hyunjin took a deep breath before entering the school building. He was supposed to go to the Faculty Office on the second floor today. It wasn't hard to find it but all the students seemed to know about his criminal record for some reason. Almost everyone Hyunjin passed by was gossiping about it.

“ _So that's him? The guy with the criminal record?”_

“ _I heard he's a problem child, and no other school will take him.”_

“ _Did you hear what people were saying on that one site? It's him...”_

“ _What if you get wrapped up in something because of him? It's probably best to stay away.”_

“ _I heard he hides a bunch of dangerous stuff inside his bag...”_

“ _Drinking, smoking, theft... I heard this guy has done it all...”_

“ _They really allow criminals into high school? I don't want to go to school with someone like that...”_

“ _Wasn't he arrested for assault? He's dangerous, the school should kick him out already...”_

It was hard to ignore them. They were whispering but they didn't really make an effort to hide the fact that they didn't want Hyunjin here. He did his best to avoid their eyes and tried to focus on getting to the Faculty Office.

Hyunjin arrived at his destination and stopped in front of the door, anxious to go inside. He sighed before finally opening the door. He quickly found Ms. Kawakami's desk and walked up to it, causing the teacher to look up and sigh. “Unbelievable”, she said. She seemed disappointed but not surprised. “Being over half a day late on your first day...? It is almost lunchtime Hwang Hyunjin, can you explain yourself?” she said, sounding annoyed. Hyunjin decided not to bring up the castle. “I got lost”, he lied instead.

“How could you have been lost for this long? Well, it's probably true that you're not used to the area yet... but you're still way too late”, she said before sighing again. “Will you pull yourself together? You were given fair warning yesterday. More importantly... I heard that you were caught along with that Seo Changbin?”, she added. Hyunjin furrowed his brows. “ _That_ Seo Changbin...?”, he asked, causing her to sigh once more. “Don't get involved with him, okay? He's nothing but trouble. He wasn't like that when he was devoting his time to track and field though...” she said the last part more to herself than to Hyunjin.

“...Anyway. Break's almost over. Classes will end after fifth period today because of the subway accident. I'll have you introduce yourself when class resumes. Follow me.”

Hyunjin followed Ms. Kawakami through some more hallways until they reached the classroom door. He didn't miss the other student's stares in the hallways. She stopped and turned around to face Hyunjin before opening it. “By the way, when you introduce yourself... Be serious about it even if you're lying to the class. Do NOT say anything unnecessary”, she said. Hyunjin nodded in response.

They entered the classroom and Ms. Kawakami had a few other things to say to the class before actually introducing Hyunjin to them. The other students didn't really seem to listen though as all of their eyes were fixed on Hyunjin, giving him scared, curious, condescending, or cautious looks and even 'whispering' among each other.

“ _Being super late on his first day? He really is insane...”_

“ _He looks normal, though..”_

“ _But he might slug us if we look him in the eye...”_

“Well I'd like to introduce a transfer student: Hwang Hyunjin. Today, we had him attend from the afternoon on since he wasn't feeling well. Alright, please say something to the class”, Ms. Kawakami said. Hyunjin looked around the room. “I'm Hwang Hyunjin, nice to meet you. Please take care of me”, he said, trying to sound as confident as possible.

“ _He seems quiet... but I bet when he loses it...”_

“ _I mean, he was arrested for assault, right?”_

The whispering continued. “...Uh...so”, Ms. Kawakami stammered, “your seat will be... hmm... over there. The one that's open”, she decided and pointed to a seat by the window in the second last row. “Sorry, but can the people nearby please share your textbooks with him for today?”

The said students sighed quite obviously. Hyunjin decided to ignore them and made his way over to his seat. Changbin seemed to be in a different class. As he approached his seat, he noticed that he recognized the boy sitting in front of Hyunjin's soon-to-be seat. It was the boy from this morning, the handsome brown haired one who had gotten into Kamoshida's car. Hyunjin remembered his name to be Minho.

Hyunjin stopped for a second. “It's you...”, he said to him absentmindedly. Minho just scoffed and looked out the window. Hyunjin wasn't too surprised at that and just sat down in the empty seat behind Minho.

“...Did you catch that? Do those two know each other?” a girl a few seats away from Hyunjin asked her friend. Her friend just giggled, “Ooh, does that mean he hit on him before transferring here” The other girl gasped. “That means he's cheating on him with Mr. Kamoshida! ...Then again, this is Lee Minho we're talking about...”, she concluded. They didn't seem to care at all that both Hyunjin and Minho could hear them. “For real, that side of the room is totally awful...” the other one sighed.

Hyunjin decided to listen to whatever Ms. Kawakami was talking about since those other students seemed to be full of shit. “Oh right, the volleyball rally is in two days... Everyone's just changed classes so make sure to use that time to get to know each other. Well then... let's get class started.”

~

Class went by pretty quickly as Hyunjin spent most of his time looking out the window whenever they didn't have to take notes. He left the classroom, contemplating whether he should look for Changbin or not, since he seemed to be the only person in this school who didn't hate his guts, when he became a bit dizzy again. For a few seconds, the hallway looked like the inside of the castle from earlier with its red carpets on the floor and expensive, and old furniture. But everything returned to normal when Hyunjin blinked a few times.

He held his head. Was he slowly going insane? Ms. Kawakami walked out of the classroom not long after Hyunjin did. “Are you sure you're okay?” she asked but didn't really seem too concerned about his health. She probably just wanted to check if Hyunjin was going to snap and kill somebody or something. He just nodded. “Also... it seems like people are already talking about you, but I'm not the one who told them”, she said before sighing deeply. “I can't even catch a break... Why do I have to deal with this...? Anyway... you should head straight home without stopping anywhere. Mr. Kim sounded pretty angry.” Hyunjin nodded again, not too eager about having to listen to Kim Sojin lecture him once he got back. “Oh, and about Seo Changbin... Don't get involved-”, she cut herself off when the blonde walked up to them.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “What do you want? I heard the police caught you cutting classes today.” Ms. Kawakami asked Changbin. The blonde shrugged. “It was nothing”, he answered. “And you haven't dyed your hair back to black either...” she continued. “Sorry about that”, he said with an attitude. Changbin turned to leave but mumbled, “I'll be waiting on the rooftop...”, as he passed by Hyunjin. Kawakami didn't notice anything.

“See, that's why I don't want you getting involved. Understood?” was all she said before returning to the Faculty Office. Hyunjin figured that Sojin would scold him either way and decided to meet Changbin on the rooftop. He climbed up a few sets of stairs until he reached a final door. It had a 'restricted area' sign on it but Hyunjin decided to ignore that for now.

There were a few plants and some classroom tables and chairs scattered by a wall, but other than that the rooftop was pretty spacious and empty. Changbin was sitting on one of the chairs so Hyunjin made his way over to him. “...There you are. Sorry for calling you up here like this”, the blonde said and Hyunjin just waved it off. “I bet Kawakami already told you stuff like 'don't get involved with him,' right?” Changbin figured. Hyunjin nodded, “She said you're trouble.” Changbin just chuckled, “We're pretty much in the same boat. I heard you got a criminal record. Everyone's talking about it. No wonder you were so gutsy.” Hyunjin moved to one of the tables to sit on top of it. “...What was all of that that happened? You know, how we almost got killed in a castle...”, Changbin asked, “It wasn't a dream, right? You remember it too...right?”

“Yeah, I remember it too...”, Hyunjin answered. He was honestly worried about the same thing. “Well, just 'cause we both remember it doesn't mean much though...” Changbin paused for a bit before smiling at Hyunjin. “I mean, even if it was a dream, you saved me from Kamoshida. So yeah... Thanks, Hyunjin”, he said smiling. Hyunjin smiled back, “You're welcome.”

It was refreshing to have someone to talk to who didn't judge him for that stupid criminal record. “But man, that Kamoshida we saw there... You prolly don't know about it, but there are some rumors about him. He's such an asshole. Nobody says anything about him 'cause he's some medalist who took the volleyball team to nationals. The way Kamoshida was king of that castle felt crazy real because of that...”, Changbin explained. Kamoshida did seem fishy to Hyunjin from the get-go. “I wonder if we can go to that castle again...”, Changbin mumbled.

“Ah, forget it. It must've all been a dream! It has to be! Sorry to drag you out here like this. That's all I had to say.” Changbin said to Hyunjin before giving him a pat on the shoulder and smiling at him. “I feel like we're gonna get along just fine as 'troublemakers'. I'll come talk if I see you around. Don't ignore me, alright!” he said. Hyunjin returned the smile and nodded as the blonde turned to leave. “Seeya”, he said, leaving Hyunjin behind on the rooftop. He was probably right. There was no way this could've been real...right?

~

Hyunjin opened the door to Leblanc and entered the cafe. Sojin already gave him a serious look from behind the counter as he did so. “Hey, I got an interesting call from your school today. It's only your first day and you're showing up hours late?” Sojin asked. Hyunjin looked to his feet. “I'm sorry”, he said, figuring that Sojin didn't want to hear any ridiculous explanations right now. “And here I thought you got up and left on time this morning...” he said in a disappointed tone. “Look, just behave yourself. Your life's forfeit if anything happens. You understand the meaning of probation, right?”

“I do”, Hyunjin said. He felt bad for disappointing Sojin, even if it wasn't his fault. “Okay then”, Sojin said before his phone started buzzing and he answered the incoming call. “Hey what's up? ...Yeah, I just closed up shop. I'll be there in half an hour ...Bye”, he said and hung up.

Hyunjin went upstairs to go to bed. After washing up, he let himself fall down on the bed and tried to wrap his head around everything that happened that day. The castle, that Jisung guy and his Persona... Had all of that really been a dream? And Changbin just happened to have the exact same one? There was no way... It all just felt too real.


	3. Chapter Two

**Welcome to Chapter 2!**

**I'm so sorry, I know I was supposed to upload this yesterday but I was so busy studying for midterms that I deadass forgot... Sorry!**

**I was surprised to see that people are actually reading this lmao. Thank you for your soft comments or tweets, I appreciate you!**

**Anyway, here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy it!**

 

**Tuesday, April 12th**

Hyunjin had another dream about the Velvet Room that night. He chose not to try to wrap his head around this whole situation because he didn't feel the need to add a headache to his list of worries. Instead, he got up and ready for his second day of school, hoping that he will actually make it to school without getting locked away in a dungeon. Just like the day before, Sojin had prepared a meal for Hyunjin. He thanked him and made his way to the train station. He made sure to bring an umbrella this time since it was still raining pretty hard.

Most of the trains still had delays because of the subway accident from a few days ago but it didn't seem to affect the line Hyunjin had to take. It was crowded, however, so Hyunjin wasn't able to grab a seat and had to stand by the door but he didn't mind it all that much. The boy just wanted to make it to school. He overheard other Shujin students on that train gossiping and talking about this and that.

“ _What was that conductor thinking, charging into the station at top speed like that?”_

“ _Didn't you hear? The guy totally lost it.”_

“ _It's been happening a lot lately. All these accidents are because people are suddenly losing their minds, right?”_

“ _Well, between the economy sucking and how depressing the news always is, it's not all that surprising”_

~

Hyunjin arrived at the school gate safely and without any interruptions. All that castle business must've not been real. He hurried inside and quickly found his classroom. His first class was social studies, taught by Teacher Ushimaru, a middle-aged man who seemed rather strict.

“I'll be teaching you the rules of society this year”, he announced as his eyes scanned the classroom. Then he scoffed. “You all look like you've been spoiled growing up. Before we learn society's rules, maybe I should start with the rules of being a decent human being”, he continued.

Hyunjin rolled his eyes and decided to look out the window next to him. The rain pouring outside and leaving water drops all over the glass seemed more interesting than this class. Teacher Ushimaru, however, seemed to have noticed that and gave Hyunjin a suspicious glare. He could feel him judge Hyunjin. “Hey, new kid”, he smirked. Hyunjin looked at him. “The Greek philosopher Plato divided the human soul into three parts. A soul is composed of appetite, spirit and what else?” he asked Hyunjin. Other students looked at each other, probably glad that it was Hyunjin who was asked this question and not themselves.

Now Hyunjin was the one to smirk. He actually knew the answer. “Logic”, he replied. Teacher Ushimaru seemed surprised. “Correct”, he said, “so you knew that, huh?” He obviously hadn't expected that. “Plato's teacher, Socrates, said that evil is born from ignorance. People who've been babied, taught that evil is due to individuality, can only become society's scum”, Teacher Ushimaru explained. The other students started whispering to each other, impressed.

“ _Wow, he got it right... Is he really a delinquent?”_

“ _He seems like a punk, but maybe he's serious about studying?”_

Hyunjin would be lying if he said that he wasn't at least a bit proud of himself. Teacher Ushimaru continued his lesson. “Bizarre incidents have been occurring frequently. Those are but the actions of society's scum. We don't need crude people like that in this school. Understand?”

~

Class went by pretty quickly and Hyunjin stretched as he walked out of the classroom. He then heard a familiar voice speak up just a few meters away from him. “Hey there, Minho” Minho, who had just walked out of the classroom as well, stopped in his tracks. He seemed tense. It was Kamoshida who had called out to him. The teacher had just come down the stairs and had a gross smile on his face as he approached the student. “You looking for a ride home? Things have been pretty dangerous lately with all those accidents” Kamoshida suggested. Minho looked to his feet uncomfortably.

Hyunjin didn't mean to eavesdrop on their conversation but he felt really bad for this Minho guy. He was obviously uncomfortable but this gross teacher just kept pressuring him. “Sorry, I have a photo shoot today. It's for the special summer issue so I can't afford to miss it...” the student replied.

Kamoshida's smile faded slowly. “Hey, now... Being a model a model's fine and dandy but don't work your pretty little self to the bone. You mentioned you weren't feeling well, right? Something about appendicitis?” he asked. Hyunjin made a face.

“Yes. I keep planning to go to the hospital, but I've been too busy... Sorry to worry you” Minho explained. “You must be lonely too. I feel bad for keeping your best friend at practice so often. That's why I asked you out in the first place. Oh, and... be careful around that transfer student. He's got a criminal record, after all. If something were to happen to you...” Kamoshida said.

Minho looked like he really wanted to leave. He had tensed up even more after Kamoshida mentioned his friend. “Thank you... Please excuse me...” he mumbled and left. Kamoshida scoffed angrily as soon as Minho had walked away and returned to his PE faculty office.

Hyunjin sighed and decided to leave the school building as well. When he reached the school gate, a familiar blonde boy approached him. “Yo”, Changbin said. Hyunjin gave him a smile. “What's up?” he asked. “I wanna talk about that castle from yesterday. I tried telling myself it was just a dream... but I just couldn't do it. I can't act like nothing happened. It's all connected to that bastard Kamoshida, after all” the older explained. Hyunjin agreed with him. All of this was way too over the top to be a weird coincidence. “I wanna find out what's up with that place, no matter what. And y'know, you're the only one I can rely on for this stuff. So, you in?” Changbin asked. Hyunjin laughed, “Of course, I'm in!” Changbin seemed relieved. “That's what I wanted to hear! I think we should just try and retrace our steps from yesterday” he suggested and Hyunjin nodded in agreement.

People may have warned him about Seo Changbin but he really didn't seem like a bad guy to Hyunjin. He was probably just as misunderstood as Hyunjin. Plus, he didn't have anyone else who wanted anything to do with him anyway.

“If a huge castle like that really exists, I'm sure we'll find it in no time”, Hyunjin said as they got started.

The two of them made their way to the station and back to the school, holding out for anything weird or suspicious on the way. They didn't notice anything. They took the exact same shortcut to school that Changbin had suggested the day before but the only arrived at... school.

“We're at school...” Hyunjin said, confused. “There wasn't anything out of place on the way either, right? I didn't see no castle either...” Changbin stated and furrowed his brows. “We must've made a wrong turn somewhere...” he added. “Let's try again”, Hyunjin suggested and Changbin nodded.

So they did but they ended up at the school once again.

Changbin dropped his bag and leaned against the stone wall by the school gate. “Is it smaller than we think it is?” the blonde thought out loud. Hyunjin pulled out his phone to check the time and sighed. It was 5 pm already. Changbin looked at him with widened eyes. “What is it?” Hyunjin asked in confusion. “Now I remember!” Changbin exclaimed. “When we returned from the castle yesterday, wasn't there this voice coming from your phone? Didn't say something weird like 'returned to the real world'?”

Hyunjin nodded slowly. “Yeah, it sounded like that navigation app I used to get to school. That was weird but what does that have to do with anything?” he replied. Changbin just sighed and took the phone from Hyunjin's hands. “What's this eyeball-looking thing?” Changbin asked as he inspected Hyunjin's apps. “Oh, that's a weird app that just randomly appeared on my phone a few days ago. I don't remember ever installing it and whenever I delete it it just seems to install itself again” Hyunjin explained. Changbin furrowed his brows. “What a weird app...” he mumbled and opened it.

“Oh, wait, this is it!” he exclaimed and stood up straight. “I knew it! It _is_ a navigation app! There's even your search history! Man, I'm such a genius!” he smirked.

He pressed something in the phone and it started to read out random sounding words. _“Kamoshida...Shujin Academy...Pervert...Castle”_ the phone said. “Wait, weren't those things we talked about before heading to school that day?” Hyunjin realized, his eyes widening. _“Beginning navigation”_ the phone continued.

Changbin was about to say something when the world around them suddenly started to change. “Wait what the-” he said as they watched the school building grow higher and eventually take the shape of a castle. The same castle they had seen before. Their jaws dropped.

“It's the castle from yesterday”, Hyunjin said in awe. “We made it back... That means what happened yesterday was for real too...” Changbin added. Hyunjin looked down at his body. His clothes had changed again, just like yesterday. The other seemed to have noticed it too. “That outfit again!” Changbin exclaimed. Hyunjin smirked. “You jelly?” he joked. The older blinked a few times and crossed his arms over his chest. “No?” he said rather unconvincingly.

“Hey”, a familiar voice said. The boy they had met here last time appeared from behind some large barrels. “Jisung!”, Changbin recognized. “Stop making a commotion!” Jisung warned. “The shadows started acting up so I came here wondering what it could be... To think you guys came back to the entrance when you guys barely managed to escape.”

“What is this place? ...Is it the school?” Hyunjin asked in a quieter voice. “That's right”, Jisung confirmed. “But it's a castle!” Changbin said, obviously confused. Jisung rolled his eyes at him. “This castle _is_ the school” he stated. “...But only to this castle's ruler. I think you called him Kamoshida? It's how his distorted heart views the school.” Changbin and Hyunjin looked at each other. “His distorted heart...? What do you mean by that?” Changbin asked. Jisung was about to answer when he was interrupted by a scream of pain coming from somewhere inside the castle.

“And what the hell was that?!” Changbin added. Jisung's expression darkened as he looked up. “It must be the slaves captive here.” More screams. “Slaves? Oh, right... we saw other guys held captive here yesterday... I'm pretty sure they're from our school”, Changbin remembered.

“Most likely on Kamoshida's orders It’s nothing out of the ordinary; it’s like that every day here. What’s more, you two escaped yesterday. He must have lost his temper quite a bit.” Jisung explained. “That son of a bitch!” Changbin growled. He looked very angry to the point where Hyunjin wondered if he had a history with Kamoshida. “Changbin…?” Jisung said, probably thinking the same thing. “…This is bullshit!” Changbin continued before kicking the castle door. “You hear me, Kamoshida!?” he yelled. Jisung rolled his eyes again. “Doing that isn’t going to open it, you know. Still, it seems you have your reasons…” he stated.

Hyunjin turned to Jisung. “Do you know where these voices are coming from?” he asked. There must be something they could do to help them, right? After all, Changbin did say they were their classmates. “You want me to take you to them? …Well I guess I could guide you there. Hyunjin seems to have potential when it comes to fighting off shadows”, Jisung said. Changbin tried not to be offended and agreed to come along.

“Alright, follow me!” Jisung announced and let them through the ventilation shaft they had escaped through last time. “Why don’t we just use the entrance?” Changbin asked as Hyunjin helped him climb through the small opening. Jisung scoffed. “Because not barging in through the entrance is one of the basics of phantom thievery” he replied as if it was the most obvious thing ever. He seemed to enjoy making fun of Changbin. “How were we supposed to know that”, the oldest muttered.

“I’ll make sure to teach you as we go. Come on, follow me!” Jisung stated.

Hyunjin was about to follow him when Changbin held him back by the wrist. “I’m sorry for dragging you into all of this by the way… but I just can’t forgive that bastard Kamoshida for doing whatever the hell he wants!” he apologized. “Don’t worry about it, I wanted to come along”, Hyunjin replied, causing the other to smile. “Really though, thanks for coming along. I owe you big time!” Changbin smiled before finally following Jisung.

If Hyunjin was being completely honest, the castle was pretty creepy. The tree of them traveled through dark halls and corridors, the only light source being one or two torches most of the time. They made sure to follow Jisung’s lead as precisely as possible since he obviously knew most about this world. Sometimes the world around them would become instable, as if the distortion was flickering which caused them to see the actual Shujin. Some small rooms would flicker between a room in the castle and one of the classrooms. “I’ve told you before, this place _is_ the school” was all Jisung had to say to that phenomenon.

He also told them to keep moving in order to avoid shadows. They were able to do that for a long time until they reached the dungeons. The hallways were very straightforward and narrow here so if they spotted a shadow, they had to fight.

“It looks like we won’t be able to avoid conflict from now on…” Jisung sighed before turning to face the two students. “Okay, Changbin you’ll have to stay behind us because you can’t defend yourself and it’s very dangerous” Jisung started in a serious tone. Changbin pouted but nodded in understanding. He did feel a bit useless for not being able to summon a persona but decided not to argue. “And you, Hyunjin need to help me fight them. You’ll need to rip off their masks to momentarily break the control the Palace ruler has over them. If you do that, the enemy will be caught off guard, allowing us to jump in for a preemptive attack.” Jisung explained. Hyunjin nodded slowly.

“Then, let’s go”, the youngest whispered. Hyunjin slowly approached the guard from behind, careful to not create any sounds. Once he got close enough to the shadow he jumped on its back and ripped off its mask, just like Jisung had told him to. The enemy involuntarily showed its true self, which turned out to be a fairy-looking thing. It looked like it could also be something like a persona.

“Arsene!” Hyunjin and his persona appeared behind him. Arsene shrouded the enemy in a cloud of darkness, confusing it before Jisung summoned Dominion and she used a fire attack. Like this, they quickly defeated the enemy. “That was awesome!” Changbin said when he came out from his hiding spot and gave the other two a high five.

The proceeded on further until they reached the place where the slaves were held captive the day before. “T-there’s nobody in here!?” Changbin noticed when he examined the cells. “Maybe they’ve been moved to a different location…” Hyunjin sighed. “I might even know where to”, Jisung stated when Changbin suddenly panicked. “Guys, there’s a shit ton of guards coming this way! I don’t think we can fight all of them at once!” he whisper-yelled. Jisung looked around. “Let’s hide in this room over there!” he announced and they quickly did.

“The Shadows probably won’t come in here” Jisung said as he took a seat on the old table in the middle of the room. Hyunjin sat down next to him, “How can you tell?” he asked. “There is a lack of distortion here, meaning the ruler’s control over this area is weak”, Jisung explained. And as if to prove his point, the distortion of the castle flickered making it seem like the three of them were in a classroom, before returning back to ‘normal’.

“Wow, it looked like a classroom for a second”, Changbin stated. “Now do you understand? This palace is another reality that the ruler’s heart projects”, Jisung explained. Hyunjin furrowed his brows “This is Kamoshida’s reality…?”

“One could say it’s a world in which one’s distorted desires have materialized. I call such a place a ‘Palace’. This is happening because he thinks the school is his own castle”, Jisung explained. The blonde seemed to grasp the concept of it. “So, it became like this because he just thought of it like that!? That son of a bitch…!” he exclaimed.

Jisung gave him a look. “You must really hate that Kamoshida guy…” he guessed. Changbin scoffed, “Hate doesn’t even cover how I feel. Everything is that asshole’s fault!” he started, speaking more to himself than to Hyunjin or Jisung. The latter seemed to feel bad for him somehow. “I don’t know what happened between you two, but don’t let your emotions get the better of you”, he advised. Then he turned to Hyunjin. “You’re curious about your outfit, aren’t you?” he asked. Changbin looked at Hyunjin as well. “Yeah, I’m curious about that too.”

“That’s also because of this world. Anything distorts according to how a ruler pleases within their palace. A school can turn into a castle like this, after all. In order to prevent such distortions, one must hold a powerful will of rebellion. Your appearance is a manifestation of that. It’s the image of rebellion that you hold within.” Jisung explained. That actually made sense to Hyunjin and Changbin nodded as well.

“But what about you, Jisung? You seem to be… different from us. Different as in not a regular human”, Hyunjin wondered. A few moments of silence passed as Jisung hesitated. “I- I am human! An honest-to-god human!” he claimed. “Outside of the metaverse however… I… lost my true form…” he mumbled, “…I think.”

“Lost your true form…? What the hell do you mean?” Changbin whined. “That’s- not important right now. I don’t really know either… but I do know how I can regain my true form! The reason why I snuck in here was for a preliminary investigation of those means. Well, I ended up getting caught though…” Jisung rambled, “Besides, I’ve been tortured by Kamoshida too! I’m going to make him pay for sure!” Changbin ruffled his blonde hair. “This is seriously crazy…”

“If we’re gonna keep going, we should hurry along”, Jisung sighed and got back to his feet. They left the small room again, careful to not alarm any of the guards. Jisung assumed that the prisoners might be in the training hall so the three of them decided to go there for now. He was right. The students they were looking for were in the training hall and Changbin did recognize them as students from the volleyball team.

The three of them watched as these poor students were physically abused, beaten and tortured by the guards. Hyunjin couldn’t believe his eyes. “This is bullshit! It’s beyond messed up!” Changbin exclaimed. There was no way for them to help either, they were behind bars and beyond their reach. One of them came closer to the cell bars. “Don’t. Leave us alone… It’s useless…” he said. Another guy joined him. “If we stay obedient, we won’t be executed like you guys!” the second one stated.

Changbin grabbed the cell bars. “You’re telling me you want to _stay_ in a place like this?” he asked in disbelief. Jisung turned to the blonde. “Wait a minute… Were you planning on taking these guys out of here?” The older furrowed his brows, “We can’t just leave them here!”

“Don’t you get it?! These are only humans in Kamoshida’s cognition. They aren’t real humans that have entered from reality. They’re different from you two.” Jisung explained, “Which means there’s no point in saving them! They’re different from the ones in the real world. You could say that these are extremely similar-looking dolls.”

“So, the school’s a castle, and the students are slaves… It’s so on point that it makes me laugh”, Changbin stated and Hyunjin couldn’t agree more. “This is what’s going on in his head”, Hyunjin mumbled in disbelief, “doesn’t that mean that he treats the volleyball team in the real world like this too?”

“Right… Kamoshida coaches the volleyball team, after all…” he realized. “They must be physically abused everyday… There’s no way they’d be so beat up normally.”

“Most likely. I mean, this proves that Kamoshida thinks of them as slaves”, Jisung sighed. “I heard that Kamoshida’s using physical punishment. They are just rumors, but…” Changbin stated. “If they’re true, wouldn’t this be something to report to the police?”

“We’ll have to think about that later. If we keep standing around like this, we’re gonna get caught. We need to head back!” Jisung announced. Changbin quickly memorized the slaves’ faces before the three of them left the training hall to escape the castle. They even managed to avoid most guards… until they reached the entrance hall.

A line of guards showed up in front of them, Kamoshida following closely behind them. “You knaves again?” he said. He was still wearing his weird king outfit and smiled grossly at them as his guards proceeded to surround them. “To think you’d make the same mistake again. You’re hopeless!”

“The school ain’t your castle!” Changbin growled. Kamoshida just laughed coldly, “It seems it’s true when they say ‘barking dogs seldom bite’. Oh, how far the star runner of the track team has fallen.” Changbin’s expression became even darker. “What the hell are you getting at!?” he exclaimed angrily.

“I speak of the ‘Track Traitor’ who acted in violence, ending his teammates’ dreams. Oh, I can only imagine the pain of the others who were dragged under with your… selfish act”, Kamoshida continued, the disgusting grin never leaving his face. Changbin was fuming.

“Violence?” Hyunjin asked from behind Changbin. He had no idea what the hell Kamoshida was talking about. “What a surprise. So, you’re accompanying him without knowing anything at all? He betrayed his teammates and crushed their hopes, yet he still carries on as carefree as ever.” “That’s not true!” Changbin exclaimed. “You’ve come along with this fool and are now going to end up dead… How unlucky for you”, Kamoshida continued, still talking to Hyunjin.

“Go. Kill them all. Don’t sully my castle with garbage”, he ordered his guards. Hyunjin and Jisung tried to fight them but it was no use. There was no chance, they were surrounded and outnumbered. It didn’t take long for the guards to defeat Hyunjin and Jisung.

Kamoshida approached the two boys lying on the floor and forcefully stepped on Jisung’s back, making the boy wince in pain. Hyunjin wanted to get off the floor to shield Changbin, since he couldn’t defend himself, but his body wasn’t listening.

“I bet you simply came here on a whim and ended up like this. Isn’t that right?” Kamoshida laughed. Changbin fell to his knees, frustrated that he couldn’t help his friends and angry because of Kamoshida’s words. “No…”

“What a worthless piece of trash, getting emotional so quickly… How dare you raise your hand at me. Though it was only temporary, have you forgotten my kindness in supervising track practice?” Changbin scoffed at that. “That wasn’t practice- it was physical abuse! You just didn’t like our team!” he yelled. “It was nothing but an eyesore! The only one who needs to achieve results is me!” Kamoshida yelled back. “That coach who got fired was hopeless too… Had he not opposed me with a sound argument, I would’ve settled it with only breaking the star’s leg.”

Changbin stopped. “…What?” “Do you need me to deal with your other leg too? The school will call it self-defense anyway!” Kamoshida laughed his cold laugh.

“Dammit…. Am I going to lose again…? Not only can I not run anymore… the track team is gone too because of this asshole…!” Changbin mumbled. Jisung gasped in realization. “So. That’s why…” Kamoshida kicked him for talking, making Jisung wince once more.

“Once these two are dealt with, you’re next” he said to Changbin. The blonde boy was still on his knees, unable to say another word. Hyunjin had to do something… but he still felt weak from their defeat. “Don’t let him win Changbin!” he yelled. Changbin paused for a second before slowly getting up from the floor. “…You’re right”, he said. “Everything that was important to me was taken by him… I’ll never get them back…!”

Kamoshida was still grinning. “Stay there and watch. Look on as these hopeless scums die for nothing because they sided with trash like you.”

“No, that’s what you are!” Changbin growled. “All you think about is using people… You’re the real scumbag, Kamoshida!” And with that Changbin started to slowly walk towards Kamoshida. “What are you doing? Silence him!” Changbin raised his hand to point at Kamoshida and yelled, “Stop looking down on me with that stupid smile on your face!”

Suddenly, Changbin reached for his head and started to yell out in pain as a mysterious voice began to ring inside his mind. _“You made me wait quite a while. You seek power, correct? Then let us form a pact.”_ Hyunjin figured that this was what he had looked like as well when he had awakened to his persona. Changbin fell to the floor, his hands still holding onto his own head. _“Since your name has been disgraced already, why not show them true rebellion? The “other you” who exists within desires it thus… I am thou, thou art I. There’s no turning back. The skull of your rebellion is your flag henceforth!”_

Changbin slowly stood back up. The pain seemed to have stopped and his clothes had changed. He was wearing matching black jacket and pants with knee pads, a red ascot, combat boots, a pair of yellow gloves, and a dark gray skull mask. He reached up to rip off the mask that had appeared on his face, just like Hyunjin had the day before. And with that, his persona appeared behind him. It took the form of a white lion with a powerful expression on its face. Just like Jisung’s and Hyunjin’s personas, it seemed to be tied to Changbin with some sort of chain.

The blonde now had a confident grin on his face. “T-this one too…?” Shadow Kamoshida exclaimed, hiding behind his guards. “Now that I have this power, it’s time for some payback!” The guards backed away from Changbin and got ready for an attack, releasing Hyunjin and Jisung. “Let’s go, Cerberus!” Changbin yelled as his persona leaped forward to attack the guards. Cerberus knocked the guards to the floor and attacked them with a stream of fire. Hyunjin’s jaw dropped as he watched. Changbin’s persona seemed very powerful.

It didn’t take Cerberus long to defeat the guards, leaving Shadow Kamoshida without any protection. “How about that!?” Changbin said, giving him a death glare. “So, Changbin had the potential too…” Jisung mumbled to himself. “Even if you apologize now, I won’t forgive you!”

Kamoshida smirked. “I told you that this is my castle. It seems you still don’t understand…” He then looked to his right as another person walked into the room. Hyunjin recognized him. “Wh- Lee Minho?” Changbin asked in confusion. It was in fact Minho but he seemed… quite different. He walked over to Kamoshida, clung onto his arm and looked up at him like he was the greatest dude in the world. All he was wearing was something that looked like some swimming shorts and matching cat ears. Kamoshida smirked grossly at him.

“Oh…! Wha… What a gorgeous boy…!” Jisung suddenly said. Hyunjin and Changbin gave him a confused look, causing Jisung to clear his throat. “What’s going on…?!” Changbin asked. That person looked like Minho but was it actually him? What would he be doing here?

“Something seems off”, Hyunjin stated. Changbin nodded, “Yeah, why is he here?” Kamoshida looked at Minho and put a hand on the boy’s cheek. Minho didn’t seem to mind at all. “Let go of him you perv!” Changbin said, repulsed by this situation.

“How many times must I tell you until you understand? This is _my_ castle. A place in which I can do whatever I want. Everyone wishes to be loved by me.” Kamoshida explained. “…That is, everyone besides slow-witted thieves like you.”

“But-“, Changbin started. “Calm down Changbin! It seems that boy isn’t the real one. He’s the same as those slaves. A being made from Kamoshida’s cognition of him!” Jisung stated.

“Enough talk. Clean them up this instant!” Shadow Kamoshida yelled, causing more guards to appear in front of the three. “We’re outnumbered. Let’s run before we get surrounded”, Jisung announced. He didn’t have to tell them twice. “We’ll expose what you really are, no matter what! You better be ready for us!”, Changbin yelled as they escaped the entrance hall. They could still hear Kamoshida’s laugh behind them. “I was beginning to get bored of torturing the ones here! Come at me whenever you want, if you don’t care about your life!”

The three of them had managed to make it outside of the castle, out of breath from running so much. “Anyways…”, Changbin said between pants, “I don’t remember changing into this!” He looked down at his outfit. Hyunjin shrugged. “It looks good on you!” Changbin rolled his eyes but smirked. “I mean you’re not wrong. It ain’t as bad as yours!” he teased, causing Hyunjin to hit his arm.

“How did this even happen? I’m so lost”, Changbin changed the subject. Jisung sighed. “I told you before. When a Persona-user opposes a Palace’s ruler and becomes a threat to them, this happens. It’s to prevent you from being affected by distortions”, he explained.

Changbin took out his phone and used it as a mirror to check out his mask. “Is this a skull?” “Your appearance reflects your inner self. It’s the rebel that slumbers within.” Jisung added. Changbin nodded slowly before gasping. “Wait, we’re in deep shit! We might’ve gotten away here, but we’re still screwed with Kamoshida at the real school!” he realized.

“That’s quite sharp of you for being an idiot” Jisung chuckled. Changbin smacked him. “Relax. The Kamoshida in reality can’t possibly know about what happens here. A shadow is the true self that is suppressed. A side of one’s personality they don’t want to see”, Jisung added. Hyunjin exhaled in relief, “So, we’re okay?” “Did the Kamoshida in reality remember about the execution? There you have it.” Jisung smiled at them.

“Alright! Now that we know that, all we gotta do is-“, Changbin started but Jisung interrupted him. “Wait. I guided you as promised. It’s your turn to cooperate with me. That’s why I was super nice about teaching you idiots about everything”, he said. Hyunjin and Changbin exchanged looks. “Dude, what are you talking about?” Changbin asked.

“Don’t you remember? I originally came here for an investigation. I need to erase the distortion from my body in reality and regain my real form! That’s why we must delve deep into Mementos and-“ Jisung said but Changbin chimed in. “Whoa, hold up. What are you going on and on about? We never said anything about helping you out.”

Jisung looked exasperated. “Don’t tell me… Are you not going to repay the hospitality I showed you? Even you Hyunjin? You’re just going to up and leave even though you are already part of my master plan!?” Hyunjin raised his hands in defense. “I don’t even know what your master plan looks like!”

“We’re busy. Maybe after we deal with Kamoshida”, Changbin said. Jisung scoffed dramatically. “Is it because I’m not fully human? Is that why you’re making a fool of me?” “Thanks for everything, dude”, Changbin said and gave Jisung a pat on the shoulder, almost as if to mock him. “See you around!”

And with that Changbin left. Hyunjin felt bad for letting Jisung down like this but decided to follow Changbin for now, not without shooting the younger an apologetic look though.

“Hey! What the hell!” Jisung yelled angrily but the two other boys were already too far away.

~

“You have returned to the real world. Welcome back”, Hyunjin’s phone said once they made it back. Changbin sighed, “Thank god. We’re back.” He then turned to Hyunjin. “I dragged you around a lot, huh? …Sorry, man.”

Hyunjin waved off. “No worries. I do feel bad for leaving Jisung behind like this, though…” he replied. “Eh, we’ll help him after we deal with Kamoshida. I just wanted to tease him a little”, Changbin grinned. They were standing in front of the school gate and not a lot of time seemed to have passed. “Ugh, I’m dead tired… How are you holding up?” Changbin asked as he stretched a little. “I’m exhausted”, Hyunjin sighed, causing the other to chuckle. “I guess you don’t really show it”, he smiled.

“But damn, if what we saw was for real, this is going to get good! I totally remember the faces of the guys Kamoshida was treatin’ like slaves. Once we make them fess up to any physical abuse, Kamoshida will be done.” Changbin said excitedly. “So, you wanna help me look for those guys or any witnesses?” he then asked Hyunjin.

“Sure, I’ll help!” he smiled. “Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about!” Changbin cheered. The two students smiled at each other before Changbin suddenly started to awkwardly scratch the back of his head. “Hey, so… If you’re thinking of layin’ low cause you got a record, I don’t think that’ll help… Everyone already knows. They totally got you pegged as a criminal”, he said. Hyunjin sighed, “I know…” “Kamoshida opened his damn mouth” Changbin added angrily.

Hyunjin didn’t know _that_. “That was him? Seriously?” Changbin nodded, “No one else besides a teacher could’ve leaked it that fast! It doesn’t matter if it’s a student or a club; that asshole just wrecks things he doesn’t agree with. Just like he did with me… No one will take anything I say seriously.”

The younger didn’t know what to say to that. Kamoshida must’ve really ruined things for Changbin. He could understand why he was so angry at him. “Still, those rumors about him gettin’ physical might be real. And after seein’ Kamoshida’s distorted-heart thing in person, there’s no way I can just sit back!” Changbin continued. Hyunjin gave him a smile, “Of course!” “I’m counting on you! Don’t worry; I’m hyped about this too!” Changbin said excitedly.

That’s when his stomach growled audibly. “Right… I haven’t eaten anything since lunch. It’d be weird to split off now, so why don’t we grab a bite somewhere?” Changbin suggested. Hyunjin agreed, now feeling how hungry he actually was. “Sure, what kind of food?” he asked. “Just follow me”, Changbin smiled, “I mean, I totally gotta hear about your past!”

They decided to go to the Beef Bowl Shop in Shibuya to have some ramen. Hyunjin told Changbin all about how he had gotten his criminal record by being falsely accused. Changbin seemed shocked. “What?! The hell, man! What an asshole!” he exclaimed. Hyunjin looked around the shop. “Calm down”, he chuckled.

“But just hearing your story makes me angry!” Changbin added and ate some more of his ramen. “So…you left your hometown and you live here now, huh? We might be more alike than I originally thought”, the blonde smiled. Hyunjin nodded, “You may be right”, he said.

“You’re the first guy that made me think that”, Changbin said fondly. “I guess it’s how we’re treated like a pain in the ass by the people around us, like we don’t belong. I did something stupid at school before, too.”

The blonde finished his ramen as Hyunjin did the same. “The place you like in now is in Yongen, right?” he asked after a while and Hyunjin nodded. “It’s rush hour on the subways. I suggest you kill some time before headin’ home”, Changbin advised.

After they both finished eating, Hyunjin wanted to pay for himself but Changbin insisted that he’d pay. “Just lemme do it. I gotta thank you for helpin’ me. Anyways, I got your back like you got mine from tomorrow on”, he grinned. Hyunjin couldn’t argue with that. “As long as we do something about Kamoshida, I’m sure we’ll both feel better about being at school”, Hyunjin confirmed. Changbin looked determined. “Just you wait, Kamoshida… We’re going to start right away tomorrow. First, let’s hit up those guys that were kept as slaves.”

“Right, the volleyball rally is tomorrow”, Hyunjin remembered. Changbin pulled a face. “Yeah. Shit’s recommended by Kamoshida. Makes me wanna gag. But thanks to that, we got no classes in the afternoon, and we can walk around unnoticed. Well, I guess we can work out the details tomorrow…”

The two of them talked a bit more and exchanged numbers and chat IDs before heading to the station. Changbin had to take a different line so they went their separate ways from there. Hyunjin felt so much better than he had the day before. He had finally made an actual friend and couldn’t stop smiling about it.

~

“Oh, hey Chanhee!” Minho smiled as he was just about to grab a drink from the vending machine. Choi Chanhee was Minho’s closest friend and they went to the same class in Shujin Academy. He was sitting on the bench next to the vending machines and gave Minho a small smile as he sat down next to him. “Minho, hey”, he said. He looked as bruised as ever, a few scratches here and there, a bandage around his right arm a band aid on his cheek.

The two of them talked for a while before Chanhee’s smile suddenly faded as he took a deep sigh. “What’s wrong?” Minho asked, concerned. He knew what was wrong. Chanhee waved off, “I-I haven’t been sleeping well lately… Whenever I close my eyes, I keep thinking about too many things…” he said. Minho knew exactly what he meant by that but chose not to talk about it. “Chanhee…” he sighed sadly.

“Nationals are coming up soon, so I keep thinking… Should someone like me really be on the starting lineup…?” Chanhee said. Minho’s heart hurt as he put on a wide smile. “Don’t worry. Just be confident in yourself! Your skills have been recognized! It’s all because you work harder than anyone else!” he said cheerfully. Chanhee sighed once more. “Yeah… Volleyball is all I have, after all…”

“More importantly, was that injury okay? It looked really swollen”, Minho asked. Chanhee’s eyes widened a bit. “N-no, it’s nothing. It’s normal… Especially since a meet’s coming up…” he said. Minho gave his friend a sad look. He knew that it wasn’t normal.

Another member of the volleyball team approached the two of them. His name was Yang Jeongin, Minho believed. He looked very bruised as well, maybe even more than Chanhee. He had a lot of scratches on his face and arms and a few band aids. “Sorry to interrupt, Chanhee… Um… Mr. Kamoshida told me to get you...” he said, an apologetic expression on his face. Chanhee’s eyes widened. “Huh? What does he want…?”

“…He didn’t say”, Jeongin said, looking down to his feet. Chanhee hesitated for a moment before turning to Minho. “Minho, I…” he started. Minho bit his lip before smiling again. “It’ll be fine! I bet it’s a meetup about the starting lineup or something.”

Chanhee hesitated before also putting on a small smile. “…Yeah”, he said and reluctantly got up. “Well, I better go…” he announced. “Yup. Good Luck!” Minho chirped before Chanhee and Jeongin left. Minho’s smile dropped. Deep down he knew that it was wrong to pretend that everything was fine, when it clearly wasn’t. “Hang in there, Chanhee…” he mumbled to himself.

~

“…You’re home”, Sojin said as Hyunjin entered Leblanc, exhausted from today’s events. “I take it you actually went to school today?” he added. Hyunjin nodded, “Of course.”

“I guess you learned your lesson after what happened yesterday. Eh, as long as you’re not getting into trouble, it’s fine by me”, Sojin stated. “Listen, I don’t know what you’ve been up to, but trust me, you’ll be gone if you start causing problems. In case you forget, your life is not a free one right now”, he warned.

Hyunjin nodded just before his phone rang. It was a text from Changbin.

Cb: Hey, I decided to go ahead and message you.

Cb: Can you see this?

Hj: Yep.

Cb: I’m going to be counting on you tomorrow, okay?

Hj: Got it.

Cb: Let’s save those guys who’re getting abused. You and me.

“…Sheesh, are you even listening to me? Just stay away from bad influences, okay?” Sojin said, a little bit pissed. Hyunjin nodded and walked past Sojin to go up to his room. He was dead tired. “I’m going to head home for the night. I’ll lock the store up. Don’t go wandering out.” Sojin added. Hyunjin nodded once more and went upstairs. He dropped his school bag to the floor, washed up and changed into his sleepwear before letting himself plop down on his bed. He had received another text from Changbin in the meantime.

Cb: That thingy on your phone was some red eyeball icon, right?

Hj: Right

Cb: I found it on my phone too…

Cb: I don’t even remember installing it!”

Hj: That’s creepy.

Cb: For real. What is this thing…?

Cb: Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow when we find evidence for the beatings.

Hj: Yeah, see you tomorrow~

Hyunjin put down his phone on his bedside table and left it to charge before getting comfortable. It didn’t take long for him to fall asleep, maybe because of the Metaverse.

~

_Hyunjin woke up in that weird prison cell again. Once again, he made his way to the cell bars where the two wardens were standing. The weird long-nosed man looked at him. “Welcome to the Velvet Room. I thought about resuming our previous conversation tonight. That is why I summoned you. What are your thoughts? Are you becoming accustomed to this place?” Igor asked in his deep voice._

_Hyunjin looked at him. “Um… yeah I guess” he said. “Ah, I’m glad to hear it. It seems you have nerves of steel. Your rehabilitation determines if ruin can be stopped. Yet, such a feat cannot be done alone. But today, you entered a partnership with someone who awoke to the same power, haven’t you?” the man continued._

_“You mean Changbin?” Hyunjin asked. “Involving yourself with others is an important foundation for your recovery. You’ve done well. That said, I am not advising the formation of superficial relationships. It must not be a frivolity, but a ring of those who would, by morals or faith, lend you their strength. In other words, they are bonds with those who have been robbed of their places to belong. The expansion of said ring will, in return, help you mature as well.”_

_Justine, one of the twin wardens chimed in. “Personas are the strength of heart… The stronger the bonds that surround you, the more power your personas will gain”, she explained softly. “There are countless people in the city who have talents that a weakling like you doesn’t. You better rack that noggin of yours and get them on your side. We’ll change that into power”, her twin sister Caroline snapped._

_“Indeed. You should be prepared to use even myself, or your ambitions will not come to fruition”, Igor said and Hyunjin nodded. Igor chuckled, “We have a deal then.” If Hyunjin was completely honest, he didn’t understand everything that was going on in the Velvet Room._

_“Well, you will understand it all in due time… Continue devoting yourself to your rehabilitation.”_

_And with that, Hyunjin returned to his sleeping self in reality._


	4. Chapter Three

**Wednesday, April 13th**

“How annoying; we’ve barely started high school, and already they’re making us play at a volleyball rally?” Hyunjin overheard a dissatisfied first-year say as he walked to school from Aoyama-Itchome station. “And why are they pitting us against the teacher team? Kamoshida’s going to crush us.”

“We get to see his technique live and in person, though. We should totally get spiked on!” his friend said. The first one giggled. “Yeah, okay. You’re going to get your face smashed in”, he replied, “Just look at how banged up the volleyball team is. What the hell goes on during their practices?”

Hyunjin felt determined to expose Kamoshida’s physical abuse. He couldn’t believe that a teacher like that still had his job. He reached the school building and quickly made it to his classroom. Obviously, there was no class but their homeroom teachers still had to inform them about the volleyball rally. They were told to change into their gym uniforms and head over to the gymnasium.

“Hyunjin, hey!” Changbin said when he saw Hyunjin at the gym. Hyunjin gave him a smile and they talked for a bit before sitting down next to all the other students waiting for their turns. It was really boring to watch hundreds of volleyball games for hours, so Changbin and Hyunjin spent most of their time just talking about anything and everything.

Lunch break was fast approaching and the last game before lunch had started. Changbin informed Hyunjin about some of the students’ names since Hyunjin still didn’t really know anyone. The students’ team was playing against the teachers, Kamoshida being the most motivated player. It was honestly hard to watch. Rather than focusing on a fair game, Kamoshida spent most of the time hitting the student players with the ball and then pretending to be worried.

One of the students seemed to be his special target for that day since he kept hitting that specific student a lot. Changbin told Hyunjin that that student was Yang Jeongin, a member of the volleyball team. He was in Hyunjin’s class.

Suddenly, one of the balls Kamoshida played hit Jeongin right in the head, knocking him to the floor. The students around him rushed to help him up and make sure he was okay, along with Kamoshida who ran over to him. “Sorry, are you okay?” Kamoshida asked in fake-worry. “Come on, take him to the nurse’s office!” he ordered. A few students ran over to carry Jeongin to the nurse’s office.

“Okay, let’s resume the game”, Kamoshida announced and the game continued. Hyunjin spotted Lee Minho on the other side of the room shooting death glares in Kamoshida’s direction.

~

For lunch break, Hyunjin and Changbin decided to go to the courtyard while most of the other students stayed inside. Changbin sighed. “That asshole’s actin’ like a king over here too… Get to know each other better, my ass. It’s just a one-man show for him to stroke his ego”, he ranted. Hyunjin agreed, “And how he acted like he was worried about Yang Jeongin? What an abusive douchebag…!”

Changbin rolled his eyes and sighed. “Well, anyways, now’s our chance to go look for the guys we saw were slaves yesterday. All of the team members should be here today. I’ll be sure to find someone to spill about Kamoshida’s abuse. Just you wait, asshole”, Changbin growled.

“Where do we start searching?” Hyunjin asked. “…The first one that popped out was a guy from your class, so let’s start from there”, Changbin suggested, earning a nod from Hyunjin. “Hopefully we can get him to talk without any issues. People have been avoiding me lately, so…” the blonde said before gasping, “oh, but you’re kinda in the same boat, huh…”

“Let’s just try for now, we might get something out of them anyway”, Hyunjin said and they made their way to his classroom, where they found the guy they were looking for. “You’re Lee Juyeon, aren’t you?” Changbin asked. “Yeah… are you guys skipping the volleyball rally? I guess it’s to be expected from you, transfer. What do you guys want?”

Hyunjin decided to ignore his comment. “How did you get injured?” he asked, gesturing towards his bandaged wrist. Juyeon’s eyes widened, “I-It’s from practice! What does that have to do with anything?” he asked, looking anxious. “Kamoshida did that to you, right?” Changbin asked. Juyeon fidgeted uncomfortably and avoided their eyes but said nothing. “Look, I’m not going to tell anyone you squealed”, Changbin added, “Just tell us about how Kamoshida’s abusin’ you.” “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Juyeon exclaimed. “Are you afraid of him?” Hyunjin asked. “I’m not! You are talking complete nonsense!” Changbin groaned in frustration. “Don’t try to hide it! We already know!” he said.

Juyeon looked at him in surprise. “You… You know? You have proof?” “Well... uh…” Changbin tried to think of something convincing but Juyeon just scoffed. “This is ridiculous. Please, leave me alone, you’re bothering me!”

Hyunjin sighed. “…Alright, that’s enough. Come on, Bin, let’s go”, he said and pulled Changbin out of the classroom. “That injury wasn’t normal! And he still won’t fess up…” Changbin said once they were out in the hallway. “Crap. If we keep going at this pace, the ball game’s going to end… We should split up”, Hyunjin suggested. “Guess that’d be faster”, Changbin smiled.

“I’ll check the Practice Building for people before clubs start. You handle the Classroom Building. I’ll hit you up if I find anything”, he decided. He also told Hyunjin which students to look for before taking off to the Practice Building.

Hyunjin decided to look for the third-year Lee Hyunjae first. He quickly found him on the first floor, talking to his friend. He looked just as beaten up as the other members. “Man, cleaning up after the volleyball rally is going to be such a goddamn pain…” he told his friend when Hyunjin approached him. He gave him a weird look. “What do you want?” he asked, sounding rather pissed. “You got something to say?” his friend added.

“You’re on the volleyball team, right? How did you get hurt?” Hyunjin asked. Hyunjae seemed alarmed. “…Uh, it’s from practice”, he replied nervously. His friend gave Hyunjin a look. “Hey, I know who this guy is. He’s that transfer student who’s been hanging out with Seo Changbin...” he told Hyunjae, who chuckled, “Oh, I get it. You’re trying to snoop on Teacher Kamoshida, right? Look, our volleyball team performs at a national level. Of course, our practices are going to be tough. Teacher Kamoshida’s just dedicated to training us. Don’t believe everything Seo Changbin says.”

“That’s corporal punishment”, Hyunjin stated, crossing his arms over his chest. Hyunjae scoffed. “D-don’t talk like you know!” he claimed defensively. “Hey, we should stop talking to him. What if he loses it and starts attacking us? I heard he even carries a knife around. Who knows what he’s capable of”, Hyunjae’s friend blabbered away. Hyunjin rolled his eyes and decided to ask some other students. Same results.

Cb: How’s it going?

Hj: No good. Everyone’s too freaked out about Kamoshida.

Cb: Same here…

Cb: But I got a lead. A first-year, new member.

Cb: He just joined, so he might not be all wrapped up in Kamoshida’s web of bullshit yet.

Cb: I’m pretty sure he’s in class 1-B.

Hj: I’ll check it out.

Hyunjin went up to the third floor where the first-year classrooms were and eventually found the right guy. His name was Lee Daehwi and he already seemed a bit intimidated when Hyunjin approached him. “Hi. You’re on the volleyball team, right?” Hyunjin asked. “Huh? Y-yeah… I’m on the volleyball team. What do you want?” he replied.

“What are those injuries?” Hyunjin continued. Daehwi’s eyes widened, “O-oh, these…? I-it, uh… It happened during practice. I mean, everyone on the team’s got injuries like this. Yang Jeongin has it especially bad though… He gets to deal with Teacher Kamoshida’s special coaching…” Daehwi rambled before his eyes widened even more in realization. “O-oh, uh… Never mind! Forget I said anything!” he panicked.

Hyunjin smiled. “Yang Jeongin?” he asked, causing Daehwi to whine. “P-please… just stop talking to me…” he pleaded, “Ask someone else if you want to know anything more…” Hyunjin decided not to torture the poor guy and left him alone.

“Attention, attention. All matches have concluded. Please get ready to go home for today”, a voice rang through the school building.

Cb: Dammit, we’re out of time. How did it go?

Hj: Take a wild guess.

Cb: So, you didn’t have any luck either…

Cb: Mkay, let’s regroup for now. See you in the courtyard?

Hj: For sure.

Hyunjin made his way over to the courtyard. Changbin hadn’t arrived yet, so he decided to wait by the vending machines. “Can I talk to you for a sec…?” a familiar voice spoke up from behind Hyunjin. He turned around to face none other that Lee Minho. “What is it?” he asked.

“It’ll be quick. Anyway, what’s with you? Like, how you were late the other day was a lie and all… There’s that weird rumor about you too.” Minho started. Before Hyunjin could say anything, Changbin appeared behind Minho. “What do you want with him?” he asked. Minho gave the younger a look. “Right back at you. You’re not even in our class”, he replied.

“…We just happened to get to know each other.” “What are you planning on doing to Teacher Kamoshida?” Minho continued. Changbin raised his eyebrows. “Huh? Oh, I see. I getcha. You’re all buddy-buddy with Kamoshida after all”, he said. Minho looked royally pissed. “This has nothing to do with you, Seo Changbin!”

“If you found out what he’s been doing behind your back, you’d dump him right away.” Changbin spat. Minho looked confused, “Behind my back…? What’s that supposed to mean…?” The blonde sighed. “You wouldn’t get it.”

“Anyway, people are already talking about you two. I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but no one’s going to help you. I’m warning you just in case. That’s all.” Minho said before leaving. Changbin glared after him before turning to Hyunjin. “Why’s he always gotta be so aggressive all the time…?” he wondered. Hyunjin furrowed his brows.

“You know him?” “We just went to the same middle school”, Changbin explained. There was a pause before the older decided to move on. “Anyways, that’s not what we’re here to talk about. I had no luck on my end. What about you? Did anything like someone’s name turn up?”

Hyunjin smiled and told Changbin about what Lee Daehwi told him about Yang Jeongin. “Special ‘coaching’, huh? True. I always see the poor guy covered in bruises. Let’s go talk to him before he leaves then!” Changbin announced.

They found him by the entrance and quickly approached him. “Hey, got a second?” Changbin asked. Jeongin looked alarmed and took a few steps back. “…Seo Changbin? And Hwang Hyunjin too…?!” he asked, clearly frightened. “C’mon we just wanna chat. Kamoshida’s been coaching you, huh? You sure it’s not just physical abuse?” Changbin questioned. Jeongin’s eyes widened as he looked at them. “Certainly not!”

“We saw him spike you today. Right in the face”, Hyunjin stated. Jeongin looked to his feet. “That was just…because I’m not good at the sport…” he lied. “Still, that doesn’t explain all the other bruises you’ve got.” Changbin added. “They’re from practice!” Jeongin claimed, just like all the other volleyball team members. “Is he forcing you to keep quiet?” Hyunjin asked in a quieter tone. Jeongin looked at him, “That’s…”

“What’s going on here?” Kamoshida appeared behind them, looking down on them in suspicion. “Yang Jeongin, isn’t it time for practice?” he said sternly. “I-I’m not feeling well today…” Jeongin said, looking down to his feet. “What? Maybe you’re better off quitting, then? You’re never going to improve that crappy form unless you show up to practice” he said coldly.

Changbin took a few steps closer to Kamoshida. “Didn’t you hear? He’s not feeling well!” he said fearlessly. Kamoshida looked right past the blonde, as if he wasn’t even there. “Well, Jeongin? Are you coming to practice or not?” he pressured. Jeongin was shaking. “I’ll go…” he said finally. Then Kamoshida looked at Changbin.

“As for you, any more trouble and you’ll be gone from this school for sure”, he warned. “Bastard…” Changbin muttered as Kamoshida turned to Hyunjin. “Same goes for you. Didn’t the principal tell you to keep in line?” Of course, he ignored the fact that Hyunjin had done absolutely nothing.

Hyunjin glared at him and then smirked. “You have an amazing spike”, he teased. Kamoshida scoffed. “Just don’t get in the way of my practice. All these unsettling rumors are making the students anxious after all” he said. “That’s your own goddamn fault” Changbin growled.

“This won’t get us anywhere. Let’s go, Jeongin”, Kamoshida said. “Shujin Academy is a place where those with aspirations come to learn. Unworthy students like yourselves don’t have any right to be here, Get with the program.” “Yes, sir…” Jeongin said as Kamoshida left. Changbin glared after him. “That asshole…” he muttered, “He’s going to pay for this…!”

“…There’s no point. Proving that he’s physically abusing us… is meaningless. Everybody knows… The principal, our parents… They all know, and they keep quiet about it”, Jeongin said quietly. Changbin turned to him, shocked. “This has gotta be a joke!” he said. “…Don’t be a pain. You don’t understand what I’m going through. Shouldn’t you of all people know that nothing’s going to help…?!” he said to Changbin. He didn’t know what to say and Jeongin ran off to the gym.

“…What now?” Hyunjin questioned, frustrated. Changbin sighed, “…I’ll try one more time to persuade the other guys. That’s… all I can do.”

~

Hyunjin once again returned to Leblanc feeling tired from everything that had happened. He couldn’t stop thinking about the Kamoshida issue. He felt bad for the volleyball team members and wanted to help them but just didn’t know how. He sighed deeply, got ready for bed and decided to watch some videos to get his mind of things, when he received a text from Changbin.

Cb: Hey, this doesn’t make any damn sense.

Cb: The principal and even the parents know about the abuse.

Cb: Why isn’t anybody speaking up about it?!

Hj: I wondered about that too…

Hj: Because volleyball.

Cb: Yeah…

Cb: It’s basically because Kamoshida made the volleyball team famous, yeah?

Hj: I guess…

Hj: But even so, that doesn’t give him the right to do whatever he wants!

Hj: He’s beating up kids, and all they’re allowed to do is endure.

Cb: And that follower of his doesn’t give a single shit…

Hj: You mean Minho?

Cb: Yeah.

Cb: Ugh what a load of bullshit.

Cb: I can’t let it end like this.

Cb: I’m going to try and find someone who knows about what’s going on with Kamoshida during break tomorrow.

Cb: Just you watch. I ain’t giving up!

And with that, Hyunjin put away his phone and soon drifted off to sleep.

**Thursday, April 14 th**

As usual, Hyunjin overheard a few students chatting on his way to school. “Did you see Teacher Kamoshida play yesterday? He was so awesome! I think I might ask for his autograph after school” a girl said to her friend, who looked a bit nervous. “I dunno if that’s such a good idea… I hear you shouldn’t go near the PE faculty office. People say you can hear weird sounds, like screaming even though no one’s there…” her friend claimed. “What? That’s probably just a rumor spread by fans to scare the competition.”

Hyunjin rolled his eyes at them and decided to listen to music until he arrived at his classroom. He didn’t really pay attention to class and looked out the window instead. About 20 minutes later, his phone buzzed.

Cb: So, about witnesses…

Cb: I was wondering if we could get something out of Minho.

Hj: But he’s not even on the volleyball team?

Cb: Just hear me out.

Cb: You know how we didn’t get a thing out of the volleyball team?

Cb: I figured it’d be a good idea to talk to someone who knows them.

Cb: Minho is best friends with one of the starters. A boy named Choi Chanhee.

Cb: I tried talking to him during break but I got nothing.

Cb: That’s why we should have Minho talk to him.

Cb: Then again, I guess it’ll be hard getting him to help us…

Cb: Sorry. Let me see what else I can come up with.

Hyunjin chuckled and put his phone away before Teacher Ushimaru would kill him. For the rest of the lesson, he tried to come up with something useful as well, but nothing useful came to his mind.

~

“Shouldn’t you be heading to volleyball?” Minho reminded Chanhee as they sat in their usual spot on the bench next to the vending machines. He looked even more bruised than a few days ago… He nodded and looked off into the distance absent-mindedly. He looked weak and downtrodden.

“That bruise above your eye… Is that from practice, too?” Minho asked carefully. Chanhee tensed up. “Y-yeah”, he said. Minho knew he was lying. But he chose to keep quiet. “Are you sure you’re not pushing yourself too hard?” he asked. Chanhee remained silent for a while longer. “I’m okay… Volleyball is the only thing I can do right…”

Minho’s phone started to ring. “Shouldn’t you take that?” Chanhee asked. Minho hesitated. “It’s probably just my part-time job… I think”, he replied nervously.

“I…should get going”, Chanhee announced. “Chanhee… Are you sure you’re okay?” Minho asked once more. Chanhee just nodded and took off as Minho answered his call. “…Yes? …Today won’t work… I’m not feeling so good… Sorry… bye.”

Minho decided to head home for today and left just as two male students went to get drinks from one of the vending machines. One of them turned around to look after Minho. “Hey, wasn’t that Lee Minho?” he smirked. His friend nodded, “Rumor has it he’s dating Kamoshida.”

“Seriously?” the first one asked. “I heard people saw them in his car together”, the other grinned. The first one paused for a second before grinning as well. “You know… he seems pretty easy, huh? You think I’d have a chance, too?” The other laughed out loud. “C’mon dude, you can’t go after Kamoshida’s bitch!” he told him.

~

Hyunjin was on his way to the courtyard to meet up with Changbin when a figure bumped into him. It was a depressed-looking boy with bruises all over his face and body. “I’m sorry! I must’ve been in the way” he said to Hyunjin. “Don’t worry about it”, Hyunjin said as he helped him up. He seemed very weak. His name tag read ‘Choi Chanhee’. That explained a lot…

“I’m really sorry though. I must’ve spaced out…” he added but Hyunjin waved off. “You don’t look familiar… Could you be the transfer student from Class D?” he asked eventually. Hyunjin nodded as Chanhee looked down to his feet. “Um, this might not be any of my business, but don’t let the rumors get to you, okay?” he said. Hyunjin smiled at him, “They don’t bother me.”

“I’m glad to hear that… My best friend is often misunderstood too… Anyway, I have to go to practice… I’ll see you around”, he said and walked off.

When Hyunjin finally arrived at the Courtyard, he was met with a pissed-looking Changbin. “Dammit…”, the blonde mumbled. “Did you find someone?” Hyunjin asked, taking a seat on the bench. “Is that what it looks like?”

Hyunjin raised his hands in defense, “No reason to get pissy with me”, he chuckled. Changbin sighed. “You’re right, sorry. I’m just so frustrated”, he said. “All of ‘em just kept sayin’ the same shit Yang Jeongin was talking about…! Kamoshida had to have told ‘em something!” Hyunjin sighed as well. “At this rate… it looks like we’ll have to go to him directly…” he stated. Changbin nodded, “We should’ve started with that…” “I know…”

“But seriously, isn’t there something we can do?” Changbin asked in frustration. “No way I’m going to give in like this!” Hyunjin thought about it. “If we told the police, they wouldn’t believe that whole castle business and we’d have no evidence. If we launched a sneak attack, we’d risk getting caught and if we did, we’d be seriously done for…” Hyunjin mumbled.

Changbin looked at him. “What if we did something to the king?” he suggested. “You know, the Kamoshida in the Metaverse?” Hyunjin was about to answer when a familiar voice interrupted their train of thought.

“I finally found you!” Hyunjin turned around to find the source of that voice but there was nobody there. Did he imagine that voice? “Did you say something?” Changbin, who looked just as confused as Hyunjin felt, asked. Hyunjin shook his head no.

Suddenly a light brown cat with dark brown stripes jumped onto the table next to them, looking at them expectantly with its purple eyes. “Don’t think you can get away with not paying me back for helping you!” it said. Now that Hyunjin thought about it, its voice sounded and awful lot like…

“Jisung?” Hyunjin realized. Changbin’s eyes widened as he stared at the cat. “Why are you a cat all of a sudden? And what are you doing here?” the latter asked in exasperation. “I told you I lost my true form! But that’s totally not the point right now! How dare you, just leave me hanging the other day!” Changbin stared the cat in disbelief. “He’s a cat now…”

“I am NOT a cat! This is just what happened when I came to this world! It was a lot of trouble finding you two”, Jisung protested. This must’ve been what he meant by not being human when in the real world. “Why a cat though?” Hyunjin asked. “How should I know!?” Jisung exclaimed.

“Anyway, you guys are having a rough time over this, huh? I heard you mention something about witnesses. You know, I could tell you a thing or two about what to do about Kamoshida” he said, scratching the back of his ear with one of his cat paws before turning to Changbin. “You were pretty close just a moment ago.”

Hyunjin was about to ask Jisung what he meant when they heard some teachers talking not too far away from them. “We really have to be looking for a cat in a busy time like this…?” one of them groaned. “I just heard a meow somewhere near here. Didn’t you hear it?” the other said. The first man sighed. “Make sure you check every nook and cranny around.” Changbin gave Hyunjin a look. “Meow…? Does that mean only us two can understand what you’re saying?” he asked Jisung. “Looks like it”, Jisung replied.

“Anyways, what you mentioned earlier… Is it for real?” Changbin added and Jisung nodded in confirmation. “Tell us more. Then again, this probably isn’t the best place…” Hyunjin stated and opened his school bag. “Hide in my bag for now. It should be big enough for you to fit”, he suggested. Jisung reluctantly agreed and hid in Hyunjin’s bag as the two students decided to discuss things on the rooftop.

“So, you said you know how we can do something about Kamoshida, right?” Changbin asked once they had made themselves comfortable on the rooftop. Jisung nodded again. “It has to do with what you mentioned earlier. You’ll need to attack his castle. That castle is how Kamoshida views this school, right? He doesn’t realize what happens in there, but it’s deeply connected to the depths of his heart. Thus, if the castle disappears, it would naturally impact the real Kamoshida”, he explained.

“What would happen?” Hyunjin asked. “A Palace is a manifestation of a person’s desires. So, if that castle were no more…” Jisung continued. “His desires would disappear too!” Hyunjin figured. “Precisely!” Jisung confirmed as Hyunjin nodded, slowly understanding the concept of how the Metaverse worked. “For real? He’s going to turn good?!” Changbin asked in surprise. “But is that really getting back at him?”

“Erasing a Palace essentially means forcing the owner to have a change of heart. However, even though their warped wants disappear, the crimes they committed remain. Kamoshida will become unable to bear the weight of his crimes, and he’ll confess them himself!” Jisung added. “You for real? That’s possible?!” Changbin exclaimed.

“And since the Palace will no longer exist, he’ll forget what we did there as well. Not only will we be able to bring Kamoshida down, but there won’t even be a trace of our involvement.” Jisung purred cheerfully. “That’s amazing! How do we get rid of the Palace?” Hyunjin asked.

“By stealing the treasure held within”, Jisung replied. Changbin furrowed his eyebrows, “Stealing…?” he asked. “I’ll tell you more once you agree to go ahead with this. It’s my most valuable, secret plan, after all. If you want to help me out, I’ll gladly teach you. What’s your call?”

Changbin looked at Hyunjin. “Our luck’s running dry looking for witnesses. Guess we have no choice but to go along…” he said, shrugging. Hyunjin nodded, “You’re right. There’s no other way…” Jisung seemed content.

“Oh, right. There’s one more thing I should tell you. If we erase a palace, there is no doubt that the person’s distorted desires will be erased as well. But desires are what we all need in order to survive. The will to sleep, eat, fall in love; those sorts of things”, Jisung added. “Okay, but what are you getting at?” Changbin questioned. “If all of those yearnings were to vanish, they’d be no different than someone who has shut down entirely. They may even die if they’re not given proper care. So…” “They might die…!?” Hyunjin exclaimed. Jisung rolled his purple cat eyes. “Will you listen to everything I have to say first?” “Would their death be our fault…?” Changbin asked.

“Aren’t you determined enough to face those kinds of risks?” Jisung asked. Changbin looked reluctant and turned to Hyunjin. “What do you think, Hyunjin…?” he asked, sounding unsure. Hyunjin also wasn’t too sure about this anymore. “I don’t want to _kill_ him…” Changbin nodded in agreement. Jisung sighed at the two of them.

“Sheesh… I come all this way, and this is what I get. It’s not like anyone will ever find out” he claimed. Changbin gasped, “That’s not the point! If we just go around secretly doin’ whatever we want, we’d be no better than that fucking Kamoshida…!” “…I’ll come back later. Fine, I’ll come back later. Think about it and make a decision”, Jisung announced before leaving the rooftop.

“Man, we’re getting all worked up for nothing…” Changbin sighed. “Let’s try to think of another way at home… Come on, Bin, let’s get out of here”, Hyunjin suggested and with that, the two of them left the rooftop. They went their separate ways at the station, as usual and Hyunjin bought himself a coffee before getting on his subway to Shibuya. That’s when Changbin texted him.

Cb: Hey, I heard something that got my attention.

Cb: About that Choi Chanhee guy… Looks like rumors are going around about him and Kamoshida.

Cb: If they’re true, it’s no wonder I couldn’t get him to talk.

Cb: Still, something about that doesn’t seem right.

Hj: What do you mean?

Cb: It’s just impossible.

Cb: I’ve known Minho and Chanhee since middle school.

Cb: There’s just no way Kamoshida is their type, y’know?

Cb: So… I gotta wonder where those rumors came from.

Cb: Well whatever, I’ll try asking around some more.

Hyunjin had wondered about that too. He took the last sip from his coffee as he got off the subway. He was about to transfer to his next line when he heard a familiar voice to his right. “Will you please give it a rest!? I told you, I’m not feeling up to it…!” It seemed to be Minho, talking on the phone to somebody. He noticed that he had gotten a bit too loud and bowed to the people around him, giving him weird looks.

“Wait, what…?! That’s not what you promised! And you call yourself a teacher!?” Minho said once he had returned to his phone call. “This has nothing to do with Chanhee!” he continued. “Ah- I-“, he looked at the phone in shock, he was probably hung up on.

Minho let himself sink to the floor, still in shock. “Chanhee’s… starting position…” he mumbled to himself. Hyunjin couldn’t watch this any longer and decided to approach Minho. Minho looked at him with wide eyes as he got back up from the floor. “Wait… Were you listening?” he questioned. Hyunjin scratched his head awkwardly. “Not on purpose…” he said.

“Haven’t you heard of privacy?” Minho snapped. He then sighed and shook his head. “…No, I was out of line. Sorry”, he said. “So, how much did you hear…?” Minho questioned soon after. “Something about a friend…” Hyunjin replied.

“Chanhee…” Minho said absent-mindedly and paused before snapping out of it. “It’s nothing at all. Nothing…” He then wiped his eyes and ran off. Hyunjin hesitated for a moment but decided to chase after him. He quickly caught up to Minho who looked a bit frustrated.

“Stop following me… Just leave me alone!” Minho said. “I just want to talk”, Hyunjin said and finally convinced Minho to go to a café nearby to talk together. He felt like Minho needed to let out his feelings for once. It was just his instinct.

“I don’t have anything to talk about with you. It was… just an argument…” Minho claimed once the waitress had brought them their waters. Hyunjin raised an eyebrow. “…With Kamoshida?” he asked. Minho avoided his eyes. He seemed really stressed out. A minute of silence passed before Minho finally spoke up.

“You’ve heard the rumors, haven’t you? About Teacher Kamoshida…” he started and Hyunjin just nodded without a word. “Everyone says we’re getting it on… but that’s so not true…” he continued, still avoiding Hyunjin’s eyes. “It was him on the other line. I avoided giving him my number for the longest time. He told me to go to his place after this… You know what it means…” Minho said, close to tears. “If I’d turn him down, he said he’d take my friend off as a regular on the team. I’ve been telling myself this is all for Chanhee’s sake… but I can’t take it anymore.” Hyunjin didn’t know what to say and just listened instead.

Minho could no longer hold back his tears. “I’ve had enough of this… I hate him! But still… Chanhee’s my best friend… He’s all I have left in that sorry excuse of a school!” Minho said before wiping away his tears with his school uniform’s sleeve and looking at Hyunjin.

“What should I do?” he asked. Hyunjin tried to say something but couldn’t come up with anything valuable. Minho gave him a small smile. “Sorry… I shouldn’t have asked. It’s not your problem”, he added. “What am I saying… I’ve barely even talked to you before.”

“Sorry for butting in…” Hyunjin said but Minho shook his head. “No… This was all my fault.” A few more moments passed before Minho chuckled. “…You’re so weird. Usually everyone just ignores me. Are you really a bad person as the rumor says? You just don’t seem like it”, Minho questioned, taking a sip of his water. “I’m bad to the bone”, Hyunjin joked, causing the other to chuckle.

“I kinda had a feeling they were all just exaggerations. You seemed lonely… almost like you didn’t belong anywhere…” Minho continued. “We’re the same in that regard. Maybe that’s why it was so easy for me to talk to you”, he smiled and sighed once more. “Is there really no way for me to help Chanhee…? I wish he’d just change his mind… Like, forget about me and everything…” he explained.

“As if something like that would ever happen…” “It could happen”, Hyunjin smiled to himself. Minho chuckled again. “I wasn’t asking for a serious response. But I do feel a bit better now. I’m going to head home”, he said and got up. “Don’t tell anyone what I told you, okay? I’ll try and think of a way to persuade Kamoshida. Well…thanks.”

Minho gave Hyunjin one last smile and left the café.

~

“Chanhee…” Jeongin said as he approached the older boy standing by the window. “Are you leaving…?” Chanhee turned around. “What is it…?” he asked his classmate. Jeongin seemed reluctant to tell him. “Teacher Kamoshida is asking for you…” he said quietly, looking down to his feet. “He’s in the PE faculty office”, he added.

Chanhee tensed up. “What did he say?” “…I don’t know” Jeongin said sadly before turning to leave. “Well… I have to go…” and with that he ran off. Chanhee’s hands were shaking with anxiety. His phone rang, it was Minho calling. “Minho…”, he said before declining the call. He held back his tears and made his way to the PE faculty office…

~

Sojin sighed when Hyunjin finally came through the Leblanc door. “…You’re late. Where have you been?” he asked. “My trains were delayed”, Hyunjin lied. “Don’t give me those lies.” Sojin replied and sighed again. “You haven’t been hanging around any bad influences, have you?” he questioned. Hyunjin smiled. “No, I actually made a friend”, he said proudly.

“Huh. They’ve gotta be pretty strange to want to spend time with you.” Hyunjin pouted as Sojin put his newspaper on the counter. “Just make sure you’re careful who your friends are, if you don’t want them ruining your life”, he warned and Hyunjin nodded in response. Sojin took a look at the clock behind the counter and yawned, “Look at the time. Seriously, think about how I feel having to stay up here waiting for you.” “Sorry”, Hyunjin mumbled. “I’m leaving. In the future, try not to come back so damn late. Understood?” “Yes”, Hyunjin said, went upstairs and checked his phone.

Cb: So, what do you think about what Jisung told us?

Cb: I dunno if I get all this stuff about stealing desires…

Cb: And Kamoshida is going to turn like, brain dead if we mess up, right?

Cb: I mean, sure I’m pissed at him…

Cb: But I dunno if I really wanna kill the guy…

Hj: Yeah, that’s way too much.

Cb: For sure.

Cb: I mean, maybe I’m just freaking out, but I don’t wanna end up a murderer cause of this shit.

Cb: Oh well…

Cb: I’ll try and see if I can come up with some other way tonight.

Hyunjin got ready for bed as usual and thought about this situation some more as he got comfortable on his bed and looked at the night sky. Stealing Kamoshida’s distorted desires… Could they really do it? His eyelids got heavier and heavier until Hyunjin finally drifted off to sleep.


	5. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, here I am, finally!  
> I wanted to upload this chapter way sooner, but I was pretty busy and just kept forgetting. Sorry about that!  
> But here it is, and I hope you enjoy reading.
> 
>  
> 
> WARNING
> 
> I already mentioned attempted suicide in the tags but in case you did not see that, I am warning you now. If attempted suicide is a topic that triggers you, you should probably not read this chapter.

**Friday, April 15 th**

“I can’t believe Choi Chanhee missed such an important meeting. I wonder what happened.”

“Teacher Kamoshida asked to see him…”

“You know, I’ve been hearing rumors about how Teacher Kamoshida and Choi Chanhee stay late…”

“He always shows up to meetings though. It’s weird that he wasn’t at the one yesterday…”

~

Hyunjin yawned as he tried to listen to whatever Teacher Ushimaru was going on and on about. “So, I assume all of you know about the separation of powers? There are three branches in our government. The National Diet is legislative, the Cabinet is executive and the Supreme Court is judiciary. This division of power provides checks and balances, which ensures no one branch becomes unstoppable…” he said. Hyunjin rolled his eyes and decided to look out the window instead.

“Have you made up your mind?” Hyunjin jumped at the sudden voice. He looked down to where the voice had come from and found a striped cat in his desk. “Jisung!” he whispered. “No matter how much thinking you do, there’s only one option. You’d be better off just listening to me” he said. Hyunjin looked around, hoping that his classmates wouldn’t notice the cat in his desk.

“Stop talking!” he whispered to Jisung. Teacher Ushimaru stopped mid-sentence. “Did I hear a cat just now?” he asked, looking around the classroom. Hyunjin grabbed his jacked and put it on his lap to hide Jisung a little.

“Could that rumored cat be somewhere nearby?” Teacher Ushimaru wondered out loud as most students went back to sleep. After a few more seconds, however, he returned to his boring lecture about politics. Hyunjin’s phone buzzed.

Cb: It’s no use… I can’t think of any other way…

Cb: It seems we just have to go along with what Jisung said…

Hj: Yeah, it seems so…

Jisung purred inside Hyunjin’s desk after reading Changbin’s messages, until Hyunjin shot him a glare to stay quiet.

Suddenly, a student on the other side who had looked out the hallway window rose from his seat in shock. “Hey… what’s that…?!” he exclaimed. Teacher Ushimaru glared at him. “Enough! This is a classroom!” he scolded. The other students now looked out that window as well. “Wait, he’s going to jump…!” a girl spoke up. That’s when the whole class started chattering and left the classroom to look out the classroom window. “No… it can’t be!” Jeongin said and stumbled closer to the window. “C-Chanhee…!?” Minho exclaimed after reaching the window as well.

“Stay in your seats! Do not step foot outside of this room!” Teacher Ushimaru attempted to get the class back into the classroom but nobody even paid attention to him. Hyunjin also ran over to the window. It was true. Chanhee was standing on the edge of the rooftop. He must’ve climbed over the fence and was now holding onto it, staring down to the courtyard. The entire hallway was filled with students now, all clinging to the window. Teachers were trying to calm down the students and get them back to class.

Before anyone could do anything, Chanhee let go of the ceiling and fell to the ground. “No…! Why…?” Hyunjin heard Minho scream. The older pushed through the crowd of students to get to the courtyard as fast as possible. Hyunjin felt dizzy. Was it to late to save him? Everything had happened so fast. The students were panicking and so were the teachers. Hyunjin also tried to make his way to the Courtyard and ran into Changbin on the way. He followed him to the Courtyard where a cluster of students had already gathered.

When Hyunjin and Changbin arrived, they watched as Minho kneeled down next to Chanhee who looked at him. Hyunjin let out a sigh of relief. Chanhee seemed to be alive for now. “Class is still in session!” a panicking teacher yelled. The last thing anyone could think of right now was class. Some students pulled out their phones and took pictures.

Minho couldn’t care less about them. “Chanhee…” he cried. “We need someone to go with him. Are there any teachers around?” a paramedic asked desperately. “I- I’m not in charge of his class though…” Minho heard a teacher say. “We should leave this to principal Kobayakawa…” another one said. “I’ll go!” Minho finally said.

The paramedic nodded and told the other workers to quickly get ready for the transport. “Chanhee… Why…?” Minho said as he took his best friend’s weak hand. “Minho…” he said weakly. “I’m sorry… I… I couldn’t take this anymore…”

“Chanhee…” More tears rolled down Minho’s face before Chanhee whispered something in his ear. Minho stopped. “…Huh? …Kamoshida?!” he said as Chanhee lost his consciousness. The paramedics quickly took him and Minho away, rushing to the hospital.

“What the hell is wrong with these people!” Changbin said angrily as he glared at the other students with their phones out. “Return to your classrooms at once!” one of the teachers yelled again. When Hyunjin looked around, he noticed Yang Jeongin with a disturbed look on his face. The younger backed away slowly before running into the school building. Changbin seemed to have noticed it too.

He exchanged looks with Hyunjin. “He knows something”, Hyunjin stated. “We’re going to make him talk this time”, Changbin growled and the two of them chased after Jeongin. It didn’t take them long to find him. “What do you want!?” Jeongin asked with widened eyes. “Why’d you run like that, huh?” Changbin asked. “I didn’t run…” he lied.

Changbin had enough of the bullshit and angrily punched the lockers next to them. “He jumped and tried to kill himself!” he yelled. Jeongin started crying. “L-leave me alone”, he mumbled. Hyunjin reached for Changbin’s shoulder to silently tell him that this was the wrong approach. “Just tell us. We’re not trying to get you busted. We won’t say you talked either!” Hyunjin told him. Jeongin paused for a few seconds before finally speaking up.

“Chanhee… He was called out by Teacher Kamoshida!” he said. “Wait, what?” Changbin asked. “I was called by him a number of times too… to the teacher’s room. It wasn’t just me or Chanhee either. He’d nominate someone when he was in a bad mood… and hit them”, he explained,

“So, the physical punishment thing _was_ for real…” Hyunjin said. Jeongin nodded, “But yesterday, he called Chanhee out of the blue. He didn’t make any mistakes of anything… Teacher Kamoshida seemed really irritated that day, so it must’ve been… worse than usual…” he continued.

Hyunjin gasped as his eyes widened. “He didn’t…!” Changbin clenched his fists. “That son of a bitch…!” he yelled angrily before running towards the PE faculty office. Hyunjin and Jeongin hurried after him.

Changbin angrily pushed open the door to the PE faculty office where Kamoshida was sitting at his desk. The blonde was fuming with anger. “You bastard! The hell did you do that boy!?” he yelled. Kamoshida turned around on his chair. “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb with me!” Changbin yelled and kicked a chair close to him, knocking down multiple things in Kamoshida’s office. “That is enough!” Kamoshida said, getting up from his chair. “What you did… wasn’t coaching…!” Jeongin said. “What did you say?” Kamoshida said, his voice sounding dangerous.

“You… you ordered me to call Choi Chanhee here… I can only imagine what you did to him!” Jeongin continued. “You’re going on and on about things you have no proof of. Basically, you’re simply making these claims because you can’t be a regular on the team, right?” Kamoshida claimed. “That’s not what this is about!”

“Even if it is exactly as you imagine it to be, hypothetically speaking… what can you do? We just received a call from the hospital. Chanhee’s in a coma and his chances of recovery are slim. How would someone like that make a statement? There’re no chances of him getting better, I hear… The poor boy” Kamoshida said in a condescending tone.  “No… That can’t be…” Jeongin sobbed. “You goddamn…!” Changbin roared. Hyunjin could tell he was fighting the urge to punch him.

“This again…? Does this mean we have yet another case of ‘self-defense’?” Kamoshida asked, annoyed. “You shut your mouth you son of a bitch!” Changbin yelled and lifted his arm to punch the teacher in the face. He would have, if Hyunjin didn’t hold onto his arm to stop him.  “Why are you stopping me…?!” Changbin growled, angrily trying to escape Hyunjin’s grip. “Don’t let him get to you!” Hyunjin said. “But still!” Changbin exclaimed as he dropped his arm again.

“Oh, you’re stopping him? What a surprise. There’s no need to hold back. Why not attack me?” Kamoshida grinned. “Ohhh, you can’t. But of course, you can’t!” he said and laughed coldly before sitting back down in his chair.

“Everyone present right now… will be expelled. I’m reporting all of you at the next board meeting”, he said. “Wh- you can’t make a decision like that!” Jeongin exclaimed, earning another cold laugh from Kamoshida. “Who would seriously consider what scum like you say? You threatened me too, Yang Jeongin, so you’re just as responsible. To think you didn’t know why I kept someone as talentless as you on the team. You act like you’re a victim, but you leaked Hwang Hyunjin’s criminal record, didn’t you? It’s all over the internet, correct? How terrible”, Kamoshida smirked.

Changbin looked at Jeongin. “You?” he asked. “He told me to do it. I had no choice…” he said, giving Hyunjin an apologetic look. Kamoshida laughed once more. “Now, are we finished here? You’re all expelled! You’re done for; your futures are mine to take. Now get out of my sight. “I can’t believe this asshole’s getting away with this…!” Changbin exclaimed but Hyunjin smirked at him.

“He’ll eat his words”, he said. Changbin gave him a confused look for a second until he realized. “…Oh, right. We have that!” “Have you lost your minds?” Kamoshida asked, “I don’t understand what garbage like you are thinking, but go ahead and try. All you can do is wait for your disposal though…”

 

~

After leaving Kamoshida’s office, the Hyunjin and Changbin met up with Jisung by the vending machines. Changbin was still trying to control his anger. “We can’t waste any time. We gotta hurry up, go to that other world and beat the shit out of that asshole!” he exclaimed. “We’re not beating him up”, Jisung chimed in, “We’re simply stealing his distorted desires. Can I assume that you’ve made up your mind about his? About how he might suffer a mental shutdown?” he asked.

Changbin turned around to face the others. “…I have”, he replied. “Someone almost died because of him! I don’t give a rat’s ass about what happens to him anymore!” he stated. Jisung nodded and turned to Hyunjin. “And you?” “I agree with Changbin”, Hyunjin said, clenching his fists. Jisung purred. “Then it’s settled!” he announced.

“By the way, is getting rid of a Palace hard…? You’ve tried it before, right?” Changbin asked. “When did I ever say that?” Jisung replied, earning a shocked gasped from both Hyunjin and Changbin. “What?! Were you just pretending to know?!” Hyunjin exclaimed. Suddenly someone appeared behind them. It was Minho.

“Is it true that you’re getting expelled? Everyone’s talking about it…” he said quietly. Changbin’s expression darkened. “That bastard is at it again…” he growled. Kamoshida had probably shared the news with the entire school once again. Gossip really spread like a wildfire at Shujin. “So, you came all this way to tell us that?” Changbin snapped at Minho.

“If you’re going to deal with Kamoshida… let me in on it too”, Minho requested. “I can’t just sit back and do nothing after what happened to Chanhee!” he exclaimed. Changbin glared at him. “This has nothing to do with you. Don’t butt your head into this…” he told him. “But it does! Chanhee’s my-”, Minho started but got interrupted by Changbin kicking the vending machine.

“I said don’t get in our way!” he yelled. Minho gave him a glare before storming off. There was a moment of silence. “…That was harsh”, Jisung commented. Changbin looked down to his feet and exhaled. “We can’t take him somewhere like that…” he said.

“I hope he doesn’t torment himself over this…” Hyunjin stated in a worried tone. Changbin nodded, feeling a bit guilty for yelling at Minho like that. His day had already been tough enough. “…We just have to hurry up and deal with Kamoshida. Let’s go right now!” Changbin decided and the three of them left the school building. They went to one of the small alleys near the school to hide from the other students.

“The moment we cross over, we’ll treat each other like phantom thieves, so I hope you’re ready”, Jisung said excitedly. Changbin raised an eyebrow at the cat. “Phantom thieves?” “Those who covertly sneak in and stylishly steal Treasure; that is what we become!” Jisung explained. Hyunjin chuckled, “Not bad!” “That does sound pretty cool!” Changbin grinned before pulling out his phone and opening the weird navigation app.

“So, we just gotta say the school, Kamoshida’s name and… castle? And boom- we end up in the Metaverse”, Changbin announced. “I have no idea how all of this works but I’m just not going to question it” he said. They did just that and watched as the world around them warped and the school building turned into the castle. What they didn’t notice was Minho watching them from behind a street lamp, trying to figure out what they were planning…

~

Their clothes had changed and the three of them stood in front of the castle. “Alright, time to bust on through!” Changbin announced, hyped for the mission. They were about to head inside when they heard a shriek from the alley behind them. “What is this!?”

None other than Lee Minho ran over to them. “M-Minho!?” Changbin gasped. “Hyunjin and Changbin!? What the hell is this? Isn’t this the school? And what are these outfits!?” Minho asked, looking around in confusion. “Why are you here?!” Hyunjin asked. “How should I know?!” Minho exclaimed.

Jisung, who had now turned back into a human, was too busy staring at Minho to say anything at first. He then shook his head to snap out of it. “I see. Perhaps he was dragged in because of that app thing. If multiple people can enter with the person who uses it, it stands to reason it’ll pull anyone nearby”, he figured. “For real?” Changbin said.

“Wait, so _this_ is related to Kamoshida!?” Minho asked, trying to grasp the situation. “Anyways, you gotta leave!” Changbin told him. “No!” Minho fought back. Jisung stepped between them. “The Shadows are going to find us if you make a scene”, he said.

Minho stopped and looked at Jisung. “Hold on, who are you anyway? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before?” he questioned, furrowing his eyebrows. “You better explain what’s going on! I won’t leave until you do!” Jisung didn’t get to introduce himself as Changbin already started to drag Minho out of the Metaverse. “Looks like we gotta force him. Can you lend me a hand?” he asked Hyunjin. Minho scoffed in exasperation. “I feel bad though…” Hyunjin said but decided to help Changbin anyway. Even if they did take Minho with them, it would be too dangerous for him. “We’ll explain after everything’s over!” Hyunjin said apologetically.

Minho tried to struggle out of their grip but failed as they too him back to where they came in, before returning to Jisung. “We better be careful from now on when we use that app…” Changbin sighed. Jisung just nodded in agreement, still looking at the place where Minho had disappeared. “Geez, Minho found out right as we were getting started… We gotta deal with this fast!” Changbin said.

They approached they castle and Jisung stopped behind some barrels, sensing something. “The Shadows have noticed us. You guys better brace yourselves…” he told them. “I’m counting on you, Joker”, he added, looking at Hyunjin. “Joker? Is that my nickname now?” the younger asked. “Don’t refer to it in such a lame way. It’s a code name. What kind of stupid phantom thief would use their real name?” Jisung scolded. “And there’s no telling what kind of effect yelling our real names would have on the Palace… It’s just a precaution.”

Changbin nodded. “Makes sense, but why is he Joker?” he asked. “Because he’s our trump card when it comes to fighting strength”, Jisung elaborated. Hyunjin smirked, “Not bad, I like it!” he said. Changbin smiled excitedly, “Ooh, what about me?” he asked Jisung.

Jisung looked at him and thought about it. “How about Leo?” he suggested eventually. “Why Leo?” Changbin asked. “Because your persona is a white lion, duh!” Hyunjin chuckled. “Right, yeah. I can live with that. What about yourself, Jisung?” Changbin questioned the youngest.

“I don’t know, you choose”, Jisung said and looked at them expectantly. Hyunjin looked at his outfit and mask. “It should be obvious. His mask and outfit are angel-themed. Even his persona is an angel”, he explained. “Fine, I’ll be Angel then” Jisung smiled. “Alright in that case, we’ll be Joker, Leo and Angel. We need to be absolutely thorough about using these codenames from now on”, he announced. It sounded kinda lame when he said it like that but Hyunjin decided not to argue.

The three of them sneaked into the castle the usual way, through the ventilation shaft and tried to go through the entrance hall. Changbin was about to just walk straight in when Jisung held him back. “Look, Shadow Kamoshida and his guards are right there!” he whisper-yelled.

“Those intruders the other day were quite entertaining. However, I can’t allow that trash to ransack my castle! Strengthen the security! Kill them on sight! I’ll reward whoever brings me their heads!” he told his guards, who replied in unison, “Praise be to King Kamoshida! Death to the intruders!”

Changbin rolled his eyes at the sight. “Angel, can’t we just beat his ass and call it a day?” he complained. Jisung smacked his arm. “Look at all those soldiers! It’d be suicide. And I’m sure you don’t want a repeat of last time”, he replied. “Besides, don’t you want him to confess his sins? There’s no point in beating him up, we need to steal his materialized desires. The Treasure.”

“Fine, but where is it?” Hyunjin chimed in. “It has to be somewhere in the depths of this castle. Let’s infiltrate further while he’s out there!” Jisung said and they were forced to go the other way. Hyunjin carefully opened the only available door and, unfortunately, was met by a guard standing inside that room. They had no choice but to ambush it, just like Jisung had told them once before. Changbin jumped on its back in a surprise attack, ripping its mask off.

Similar to one they had seen before, it took the shape of some kind of fairy. Changbin, who had spent most of his time watching the other two fight the last time they came here, remembered that these types of guards were really vulnerable to fire attacks. He grinned, quickly summoned his persona and watched as the lion knocked the enemy to the ground before setting it on fire.

He was already in the middle of celebrating when something weird happened. The Shadow made eye contact with Hyunjin and instead of just disappearing into thin air, like the other Shadows they had encountered so far, it turned into a mask that looked just like Hyunjin’s and started floating towards him. The new mask then merged with the mask Hyunjin was already wearing. Jisung stared at him, wide-eyed.

“What just happened?” Hyunjin asked. Changbin stared at him too now. “It was just as if the enemy got sucked into Joker’s mask!?” he said and turned to Jisung for an explanation. “I-I have no idea, I wasn’t expecting that either…!” was all Jisung could say to that.

The three of them were so distracted by what had just happened, that they almost didn’t notice another guard entering the room. Changbin and Jisung got ready to fight it while Hyunjin felt different. He was just about to summon Arsene when he felt another presence in his heart. Hyunjin tried to focus on that new and different energy and ended up summoning the fairy-looking shadow instead of Arsene. The fairy defeated the guard in front of them with a sudden struck of lightning hitting it.

The room fell silent after the battle had ended and Jisung and Changbin stared at Hyunjin. “That… wasn’t Arsene, right?” Changbin asked, furrowing his brows. Hyunjin wasn’t too sure about what had just happened either. “Wasn’t that the shadow from earlier?” Jisung questioned. “Don’t tell me… Did you take in the Shadow’s appearance and powers as a persona? Holy… Does that mean you can wield multiple Personas?”

“What does that mean, what did I do?” Hyunjin asked. “You sealed the enemy’s appearance and powers into your mask and made it your new Persona…” Jisung muttered. “I’ve never seen anyone do that… I didn’t even know it was possible!”

“Is that a good thing?” Hyunjin asked slowly, causing Jisung to gasp. “Of course, it is! Only one heart exists per person, so normally a person can only have one Persona! But this… is incredible! That ability will give us a huge advantage in battle!” Jisung said excitedly. “Alright, I’ll try to do that more, then”, Hyunjin chuckled as they infiltrated more of the castle. With Hyunjin’s amazing ability, they were able to defeat Shadows more efficiently and made more progress as their teamwork improved along the way.

After what felt like about an hour, they decided to take a break in a small side room. Changbin sighed, “Aren’t there even more Shadows than before? Just getting this far has been exhausting as hell…” “It’s all because you guys provoked Kamoshida, you know”, Jisung said.

“Still… don’t you think he seems to be awfully on guard…?” Hyunjin chimed in. Jisung nodded in agreement. “Anyways, how are we supposed to steal that Treasure thing?” Changbin asked as he sat down on one of the ancient looking armchairs.

“First, we have to secure an infiltration route. A path to the Treasure’s location”, Jisung replied but he looked a bit worried. “But honestly, I think we need a little more manpower to accomplish this. At least one more person would be useful…” he continued. Changbin gave him a look. “Hey, you say you don’t have your memories and all, but somehow you still know about that kinda stuff?” he asked.

Jisung’s expression darkened. “I don’t know… I do remember bits and pieces like this but… I don’t remember anything about my past”, he said looking down to his feet. Changbin was about to say something to that when they heard voices outside of the small room, they were resting in.

“…Still, why was the prince in such an odd place…?!” a guard said. “Prince?” Hyunjin whispered, earning shrugs from Changbin and Jisung. “I could’ve sworn we were pursuing the readings of an intruder…” the guard continued. “It doesn’t matter now. We must take him back to King Kamoshida!” another guard said as they walked off.

“Who is this prince they are talking about?” Changbin wondered. Jisung carefully opened the door. “You guys wait here, I’ll follow them and look into it!” he announced before sneaking after them. Changbin and Hyunjin exchanged looks but decided to comply and wait for now. Only a few minutes passed before Jisung came storming back. “This is bad!” he said with widened eyes. The other two got back to their feet, alarmed. “Your friend… Minho! He’s been taken by Shadows!” Jisung said.

“What? We sent him home earlier!” Changbin exclaimed. “If that navigation app got installed on his phone, he could’ve come back!” Hyunjin realized. “Dammit! We let him out for his own safety and he just came back in by himself…!” Changbin said.

“We don’t have time to lose, we need to help him!” Hyunjin stated. “You’re right. Follow me!” Jisung said and led them through a few hallways towards the entrance hall.

~

Minho had been tied to a chair, three guards standing around him. He clearly had no idea what the hell was going on. “What’s all this about!? Seriously, I’m going to call the cops!” he said, sounding annoyed and confused. That’s when Shadow Kamoshida entered the room from the other side. “Kamoshida?!” Minho exclaimed, sounding even more confused than before. “So, this is the intruder”, he said, the Shadow version of Minho that Jisung, Hyunjin and Changbin had seen the day before appearing behind him. “Who’s that…?” Minho asked, “More importantly, what is this place?! Why’s the school turned into something like this?!”

Kamoshida laughed coldly and glared as his guards. “I can’t believe you mistook my Minho for someone like him”, he told them before looking at Minho again. “Are you afraid?” he asked. Minho looked at him in disbelief. “What is that outfit…? Have you lost your mind?” he exclaimed, earning a shrug from Kamoshida.

“I do as I please here. After all, this is my castle… The world of my desires”, Kamoshida smirked. Minho gave him a disgusted look. “What the-!? Is this some kind of red-light district!?” he said.

Shadow Kamoshida laughed. “What a lively slave”, he commented as Minho struggled against the ropes holding him back. “This isn’t funny! Enough of this bullshit, Kamoshida!” he yelled. Kamoshida laughed some more before turning to the fake Minho. “The boy’s decided to tell me off. What do you think of that?” he asked him. “Talking back is, like… totally unforgivable…” the fake Minho replied. It was Minho’s voice but the way he talked didn’t sound anything like him. The real Minho was beyond disgusted,

“If that’s the case… he should be executed”, Shadow Kamoshida decided and another, stronger looking guard approached Minho, his sword aimed at his throat. His eyes widened. “Are you kidding me!?”

“Hey, there he is!” Jisung said as he burst through the door, closely followed by Hyunjin and Changbin. “Minho!” Changbin exclaimed. Kamoshida turned to face them, clearly angered. “Just when I was about to start enjoying myself…” he muttered to himself.

Minho looked beyond relieved to see them. “What’s the deal with this guy…!?” he asked desperately. “You little…!” Changbin growled at Kamoshida. “How many times are you gonna come back?” the latter asked angrily before turning to Minho again, the real one. “I bet you’re just like those thieves. You came because you’re pissed at me, huh? But, ah… I forget that guy’s name, but it’s your fault he jumped, you know”, he stated. Minho looked up at him in disbelief. “You were so reluctant to throw yourself onto me that I had him take your place”, Kamoshida shrugged, grinning.

“You bastard!” Minho screamed. The big guard stepped closer to him threateningly, the sword now almost touching his throat. “No!” Jisung yelled, taking a few steps towards the scene. “Take one more step and I’ll kill him on the spot”, Kamoshida warned, forcing Jisung to stop in his tracks. “Dammit!” Changbin muttered.

“Just sit back and enjoy the dismantlement show”, Kamoshida smirked disgustingly. “No! Don’t!” Minho panicked. Hyunjin didn’t know what to do. If they stepped in, the guards would kill Minho and if they didn’t, who knows what Kamoshida would do. Jisung bit his lip in inner conflict, probably thinking the same thing.

Minho looked down. “Is this… my punishment for what happened to Chanhee…?” he said weakly. “That’s more like it. You should’ve looked like this from the start”, Kamoshida said. “Chanhee… I’m so sorry…”

“Don’t give in!” Jisung said, unable to listen to Minho’s quiet sobs any longer. Minho looked up slowly. “…You’re right” he said, causing Kamoshida to pause. “Letting this piece of shit toy with me… What was I thinking…?!” he continued.

“Like I always say. Slaves should just behave and-“ “Shut up. I’ve had enough of this. You piss me off you son of a bitch!” Minho yelled. A few seconds passed before Minho struggled against the rope that tied him to the chair, wincing in pain as he listened to the voice in his head. It seemed to be the same as Changbin and Hyunjin when they had awakened to their personas.

“ _My… It has taken far too long. Tell me… Who is going to avenge him if you don’t?”_ , the voice said as Minho yelled in pain, the ropes slowly starting to loosen around him. “ _Forgiving him was never the option. Such is the scream of the other you that dwells within…”_ Minho had finally to get rid of the ropes and reached for his head, still yelling in pain. “ _I am thou, thou art I… We can finally forge a contract.”_

Suddenly, Minho stopped, and the room fell silent. A mask had appeared on his face, just like it had with the others. It was purple, elegant and resembled a cat’s face. “I hear you, Ishtar”, he told his persona. “You’re right. No more holding back…!”

“ _There you go… Nothing can be solved by restraining yourself. Understand? Then I’ll gladly lend you my strength”,_ Ishtar continued as Minho ripped the mask off his face, causing his persona to appear behind him. It had the appearance of an elegant-looking woman in a white dress. Her blonde hair reached her waist and two long, white horns grew out of her head. She looked petite, but her aura seemed powerful.

Shadow Kamoshida was still stunned by the scene in front of him when Minho smoothly kicked the sword out of one of the guards’ hands, sliced the fake Minho, causing him to turn into a black mist, just like the other defeated shadows always did, and turned to Kamoshida, who was hiding behind another guard.

“You know what? I’m not some cheap guy you can toy with, you scumbag!” he said as Hyunjin, Changbin and Jisung lined up next to him, ready to attack the last guard. Kamoshida’s expression darkened. “Bitch!” he spat. “You stole everything from Chanhee… You destroyed him… Now it’s your turn!” Minho continued and pointed at Kamoshida. “I will rob you of everything…! Come on, Ishtar, let’s give him hell!”

That’s when Ishtar launched her attack on the guard. The other three boys were ready to step in at any moment, but it seemed like they didn’t need to. Minho’s persona summoned a struck of lightning, that seemed to erupt from the high ceiling of the castle, and let it hit the guard in front of them. It only took a few more of those until the guard disappeared. Jisung smirked and Changbin’s jaw dropped at how powerful Minho seemed to be.

Now the only enemy left in the room was Kamoshida, looking weak and exposed without his guards surrounding him. “Shit”, he muttered before storming off. Minho wanted to run after him, but his body just wouldn’t listen to him. Instead, he fell to his knees. “Wait…!”

His energy must’ve been completely drained from everything that had just happened. The others hurried over to him to help him back to his feet. “Are you alright?” Jisung asked. Minho still didn’t seem to know what the hell was going on, which was understandable. “Who are you and… where in the world are we…!?” he questioned, looking around. “J-Just calm down. Everything’s going to be okay, don’t worry”, Hyunjin assured him. Minho scoffed. “How am I supposed to calm down!?” he exclaimed before stopping suddenly. He seemed to have finally noticed his change of clothes that had happened during his awakening. Instead of his school uniform, he was now wearing a pair of skinny black jeans, black shoes and a purple jacket, that matched the purple of his mask. However, the jacket was open, revealing his bare chest. He also had a purple tail that really made him look like a cat.

He quickly pulled his jacked closed to hide his exposed chest. “Why am I dressed like this!? When did I-“, he complained before groaning in frustration and embarrassment. “Ugh, what’s with this!?”

Changbin just shrugged, “I don’t get your problem, you look great”, he said indifferently, earning a glare from the older. “Anyway, there’s no time to explain. A search party will be coming for us soon!” Jisung announced. “We don’t have a choice, let’s retreat for now!” Hyunjin agreed and the four of them left the Metaverse, Jisung and Hyunjin supporting Minho, who was still feeling weak.

~

“Which one do you want?” Changbin asked, offering Minho two different drinks he had just gotten from the vending machine nearby. They had decided to go to the Underground Walkway at the station in Shibuya for now, since the school was already closed. Minho eyed the drinks and thought for a second before shrugging. “Whichever is not carbonated”, he replied.

Changbin handed him one of the drinks and offered the other one to Hyunjin. The younger thanked him and gladly accepted the drink. “What about me?” Jisung chimed in as he peaked out of Hyunjin’s bag. “Huh? But you’re a cat”, Changbin chuckled. They had briefly explained to Minho, that the brown cat was Jisung after they had left the Metaverse. The oldest looked a bit confused at first but didn’t seem to mind.

“…Have you calmed down, Minho?” Jisung changed the subject, a worried tone in his voice. Minho sighed and nodded. “Honestly, I still can’t believe what happened…” Minho said. “That power… my Persona…”

“It’s only natural that you’re confused. Demanding that you understand all of this right after what you went through is asking too much”, Jisung added. “Your persona is the will of your rebellion. With it, you’ll be able to fight in that other world.”

“So, if what you told me is true, we can make Kamoshida have a change of heart, right? Is it really possible? Can we actually force him to confess his crimes?” Minho asked, a hint of hope in his tone. Changbin nodded. “The volleyball team’s keeping quiet about this, while teachers turn a blind eye. If guys like us try to complain, they’re just gonna shoot us down.”

“Going all in on this plan is the only choice we have”, Hyunjin agreed. Minho thought for a few seconds. “Then let me help too. I want to make him pay for what happened to Chanhee. He just keeps going like nothing happened, even after what he did to him… I’ll never forgive him.”

“Wait, did you just say, ‘let me help’? You mean you want us to take you along?” Changbin asked. Minho crossed his arms over his chest. “Don’t act like I’m going to drag you down! Weren’t you watching? I can fight too!” he complained. Changbin looked at Hyunjin. “I think he’ll be great”, Hyunjin said honestly. “I agree as well. We are lacking in manpower, after all”, Jisung chimed in. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect him”, he added proudly.

Minho laughed. “Even if you said no, I’d just go in alone”, he shrugged. “Oh right, he can go by himself… I guess it’d be more dangerous turning him down…”, Changbin realized and eventually agreed. The oldest smiled. “Then it’s decided. Well, I hope we get along!” Minho said happily.

“I’m going to make Kamoshida atone for what he did. Not just for Chanhee’s sake… but for everything he’s done. I won’t let any more people suffer because of him. I’ll do whatever it takes!” Minho said with conviction, earning a smile from Hyunjin. “Just let me know when you’re heading back in… Oh, wait! We don’t have each other’s info. Give me your number and chat ID”, he added and exchanged numbers with Hyunjin and Changbin.

“I’ll be counting on you then. Same goes for you, Jisung!” he smiled at Jisung. “The pleasure is all mine”, the latter said, earning an eyeroll from Changbin as Minho left for his train. Jisung sighed. “What a kind boy… Such admirable consideration for others… And the innocence to cast himself into the jaws of death to achieve his goal. He cares about his friends, and he’s beautiful to boot… What a boy! He’s captured my heart…” Jisung swooned, causing Changbin to furrow his brows. “Dude.”

Hyunjin just chuckled and changed the subject. “You know, it would be better if this group could get together quickly from now on…” he stated. “True”, Jisung said, “Our best option would be to make a secret hideout where we could discuss these things.”

“A hideout, huh. I like the sound of that”, Changbin smiled as Hyunjin agreed. “The school rooftop would work… It seems like nobody goes up there. For the time being, that will make the perfect hideout”, Jisung said. “I can’t contact you from inside a Palace, so I’ll stay in this world. That being said, I need someone to take care of me. I am personally nominating Hyunjin. You should feel honored”, Jisung announced, smiling.

Hyunjin gave him an alarmed look before turning to Changbin, who lifted his hands. “This is all you. There’s no way I can at my place”, he said. Hyunjin bit his lip. Would Sojin really allow him to keep a cat? There was no other place for Jisung to stay at, so he would just have to try…

“Fine, my place it is, then”, Hyunjin agreed. An announcement voice rang through the speakers. It seemed to be about the train Changbin needed to take to get home. “Well, we now have our hideout, so let’s meet there tomorrow!” Changbin said before running off to catch his train, leaving Hyunjin and Jisung behind.

“Alright! Let’s go to look at my new residence for this world”, Jisung said happily before going back to hiding in Hyunjin’s bag. He stayed there for the entire ride back home and Hyunjin couldn’t help but worry about what Sojin was going to say about him bringing a cat home.

~

“The store is still open. Go upstairs”, Sojin said when Hyunjin entered Leblanc, Jisung still hiding in his bag. Hyunjin nodded and did as he was told. Once he had climbed the stairs to his room, he carefully him down. “Can I come out yet?” Jisung asked excitedly from inside the bag. “Not yet, I need to wait for Sojin to leave”, Hyunjin replied. He didn’t really know how to confront Sojin about it, so instead he decided to do some homework in the meantime.

About an hour later, he heard Sojin call him, causing the boy to come back down the stairs. “I’ve gotta get home and start making dinner…” he told Hyunjin when he arrived and closed the shop. Once Hyunjin figured that Sojin had left the café, he let Jisung out of his bag. The cat looked around. “What the- Is this some kind of abandoned house?!” he asked. Hyunjin was about to get offended when he heard a voice behind him.

“Hey, are you- I was wondering why I heard meowing…”, Sojin said when he came up the stairs. He didn’t look too pleased with what he saw. “What did you bring it here for!?” he asked Hyunjin. Time to think of an excuse. “It doesn’t have a home…” Hyunjin replied with a sad tone in his voice as Jisung meowed pitifully, playing along. It wasn’t even that big of a lie, Jisung didn’t have a home, after all.

Sojin’s expression faltered. “Nowhere, huh…?” he sighed and paused for a second before crossing his arms over his chest. “Look, this place is a restaurant. Animals are a no-go… Though I guess you might stay on good behavior if you have a pet to take care of…” he continued before sighing deeply. Sojin looked at Jisung and then back at Hyunjin’s sad expression.

“Fine… But keep it quiet when we’re open for business. And don’t let it roam downstairs, or I’ll toss it out”, he finally agreed, earing a smile from Hyunjin. “Oh, and I’m not going to take care of it. That’s all on you!” he added. Hyunjin nodded and Sojin turned to leave.

Hyunjin let out a sigh of relief. “Was that the ruler of this place?” Jisung asked. Hyunjin nodded and let himself plop down on the bed next to the cat. “He seemed pretty understanding for someone who keeps you cramped in this dump. Then again, I suppose to normal people I just sound like a regular cat”, Jisung said just as Sojin returned to the attic with a plate in his hands. He seemed to have prepared some leftovers for Jisung to eat.

“Seriously… It just had to keep calling out in that soft little voice…” he said as he set down the plate in front of Jisung, giving him a soft pat on the head. Then he turned to Hyunjin. “Make sure you wash that dish. By the way… have you decided on a name?” he asked slowly. Hyunjin nodded. “Jisung”, he replied. “I see… I was hoping I’d get to name it…” Sojin said, sounding a bit disappointed. He gave Jisung one last look and left the attic.

“Looks like the chief likes me better than you”, Jisung teased dodging Hyunjin’s attempt to smack him. “And to be honest, this place is heaven compared to Kamoshida’s cells”, he added. Hyunjin decided to get ready to go to bed and went to the bathroom.

“…Remember how you guys asked me before about what I am…?” Jisung said after the two of them had gotten comfortable on Hyunjin’s bed. Hyunjin nodded. “To be honest… I don’t remember anything about my birth. I think the Metaverse’s distortions made me lose both my memories and my true form…” he sighed. “Is that form human or a cat?” Hyunjin asked half-jokingly.

“It has to be human! I mean why else would a cat be able to talk like this? There’s no other possible explanation. There’s no doubt that the distortions were what caused me to lose my real self. I’m sure that once they’re purged, I’ll finally be able to get that self back. And I have a pretty good idea on how to do it too. That’s why I was in the castle in the first place.”

The two of them talked more about their pasts, about the Kamoshida and about the Metaverse until they were about to finally fall asleep when Hyunjin’s phone buzzed. It was a text from Minho.

Mh: Thanks for everything today.

Mh: You saved me, and I didn’t even thank you properly.

Hj: Don’t worry about it.

Mh: I can’t.

Mh: Anyway, I wanted to let you know at least.

Mh: See you tomorrow.

Hj: Yeah, see you tomorrow.

Hyunjin and Jisung talked for a little more until they finally fell asleep.

 

**Thanks for reading! I hope I can upload a new chapter next Saturday. Don't forget to leave a comment every once in a while, I really appreciate those!**


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